{"1": {"fulltext": "HI\\nv SbhSBBK\\nES9SH\\nEwQa\\nSONS\\nam\\nm\\nmm", "height": "3643", "width": "2494", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0001.jp2"}, "2": {"fulltext": "Book ,E 5\\nGPO", "height": "3556", "width": "2372", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0002.jp2"}, "3": {"fulltext": "", "height": "3520", "width": "2316", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0003.jp2"}, "4": {"fulltext": "", "height": "3598", "width": "2106", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0004.jp2"}, "5": {"fulltext": "", "height": "3520", "width": "2256", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0005.jp2"}, "6": {"fulltext": "", "height": "3520", "width": "2364", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0006.jp2"}, "7": {"fulltext": "FAMILY PICTURES\\nFROM\\n\u00c2\u00a369\\nnil.\\nTHE BIBLE.\\nMA\\nBY M*fi.* ELLET,\\nAUTHOR OF THE WOMEN OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION.\\nNEW YORK:\\nG. P. PUTNAM, 155 BROADWAY.\\nLONDON.\\nPutnam s American agency.\\n1849.\\n1/", "height": "3500", "width": "2252", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0007.jp2"}, "8": {"fulltext": "33 5 5 1 5C\\n,ET5\\nEntered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1849, by\\nG. P. PUTNAM,\\nin the Clerk s Office of the District Court of the Southern District of New Yorl?.\\nR. CRAIGHEAD, PRINTER AND STEREOTYPER,\\n1]2 FULTON STREET, NEW YORE.", "height": "3520", "width": "2356", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0008.jp2"}, "9": {"fulltext": "CONTENTS\\nD.D\\nI. THE FIRST HUMAN FAMILY,\\nII. THE FAMILY OF. NOAH,\\nIII. ABRAHAM AND HIS FAMILY,\\nIV. THE FAMILY OF LOT,\\nV. ISAAC. BY REV. GEORG-E W. BETHUNE, D.D.,\\nVI. JACOB. BY REV. HENRY FIELD,\\nVII. THE FAMILY OF MOSES,\\nVIII. JOB AND HIS FAMILY. BY REV. M. S. HUTTON\\nIX. THE FAMILY OF ELKANAH,\\nX. ELI AND HIS FAMILY,\\nXI. THE FAMILY OF NAOMI,\\nXII. THE FAMILY OF SAUL,\\nXIII. THE FAMILY OF DAVID,\\nXIV. THE FAMILY OF SOLOMON,\\nXV. THE FAMILY OF AHAB,\\nXVI. THE WIDOW OF SAREPTA. BY REV. WILLIAM MARTIN,\\nXVII. THE HOLY FAMILY. BY REV. B. M. PALMER,\\nXVIII. THE FAMILY OF ZACHARIAS. BY MISS CAROLINE CHESEBRO\\nXIX. THE FAMILY AT BETHANY. BY REV. S. D. BURCHARD,\\nXX. THE FAMILY OF CORNELIUS,\\nXXI. THE FAMILY OF MATTATHIAS, FROM THE APOCRYPHA,\\nPage\\n1\\n8\\n11\\n26\\n35\\n45\\n55\\n63\\n86\\n92\\n99\\n106\\n116\\n129\\n134\\n144\\n150\\n167\\n195\\n204\\n212", "height": "3508", "width": "2252", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0009.jp2"}, "10": {"fulltext": "", "height": "3520", "width": "2308", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0012.jp2"}, "11": {"fulltext": "FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\ni.\\nTHE FIRST HUMAN FAMILY.\\nNeander, in his History of the Establishment and Progress of the\\nChristian Church, says that the Bible was the chief book of instruc-\\ntion for families in the first centuries of Christianity. A wise use\\nwas also made of it in the public education of youth. A celebrated\\nstatesman required his son to commit to memory every day a\\nportion of the Holy Scriptures, and the boy took great pleasure\\ntherein the cultivation of mind as well as heart being advanced,\\nwhile his aspirations after truth and sanctification were the engross-\\ning aims of his life. The obligations of distinguished writers in all\\nages to the Bible, especially to its poetical portions, must be\\nacknowledged by all who compare their works with it. Schlegel\\nsays The sacred writings form a fiery and godlike fountain of\\ninspiration, of which the greatest of modern poets have never been\\nweary of drinking which has suggested to them their noblest\\nimages, and animated them for their sublimest flights. Cowley\\nalso, in his preface to Davideis, proves his assertion that fiction\\nis not necessary to fine poetry, by directing attention to the literary\\nvalue of the Scriptures. What can we imagine, he says, more\\nproper for the ornament of wit or learning in the story of Deucalion\\nthan in that of Noah Why will not the actions of Samson afford\\nas plentiful matter as the labors of Hercules Why is not Jephtha s\\ndaughter as good a woman as Iphigenia And the friendshiu\\n1", "height": "3496", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0013.jp2"}, "12": {"fulltext": "I FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nof David and Jonathan more worthy celebration than that of\\nTheseus and Pirithous Does not the passage of Moses and the\\nIsraelites into the Holy Land yield incomparably more poetical\\nvariety than the voyages of Ulysses or JEneas Are the obsolete\\nthreadbare tales of Thebes and Troy half so stored with great\\nhistorical and supernatural actions as the wars of Joshua, of the\\nJudges, and of divers others Can all the transformations of the\\ngods give such copious hints to nourish and expatiate on as the\\ntrue miracles of Christ, or of Iris prophets and apostles V\\nBut not only, nor chiefly, in a literary point of view, is the Holy\\nBook the best instructor of families. It will not be questioned, at\\nleast by any who believe in revelation, that a substantial religious\\nfoundation is indispensably necessary for the true family organization\\nand welfare the more so, as experience shows daily how far into\\nthe future extend the habits and influences of family life, exercising\\na controlling effect upon that which is more public, whether it lie in\\nthe department of Church or State. No truth is more generally\\nadmitted than that most of the good or evil exhibited in the actions\\nof men exists in the germ during childhood and youth, and that it\\nmay often be discerned by judicious observation, and checked or\\neradicated, or be nourished by careful culture. Where the conduct\\nin advanced years is not governed by correct principle, the presump-\\ntion is a fair one that the home culture has been neglected.\\nThe differences are strongly marked between the family life of\\nancient and modern times. In the primitive ages of the world, the\\nbond of union was closer, firmer, and more enduring, and the com-\\nmunion of feeling more pervading and constant. Parental authority\\nwas more reverenced, and was exercised in a wider range the sons\\nand daughters were educated at home, and the household circle\\nconstituted their society. The fear of God, which was the founda-\\ntion of the earliest wisdom taught, dwelt in the house the domestic\\naltar was continually surrounded by worshippers and sacrifices, as\\nwell as vows, were offered to the Most High. In the simplicity", "height": "3520", "width": "2348", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0014.jp2"}, "13": {"fulltext": "THE FIRST HUMAN FAMILY.\\nof ancient days, men who had been properly instructed walked by\\nfaith rather than by knowledge they were accustomed to pay more\\nregard to realities than to mere appearances, and the language of the\\nlips more commonly expressed the feelings of the heart. Under\\nthe early constitution, the head of the family stood invested with\\nauthority delegated from the Supreme Father the wife had her\\nhonored though subordinate place, and obedience on the children s\\npart was not only considered an imperative and paramount duty,\\nbut enforced by penalties rigidly exacted. The religious element\\nwhich pervaded the domestic relations chiefly contributed to the\\npreservation of order and harmony through all. The customs\\nof polygamy and divorce, so discordant with the original institution\\nof marriage, and the consequently degraded position of woman,\\nwere evils, however, that often marred the family life under the\\nold usage. The tendency of Christianity was to remove them,\\nwhile a new bond of union was added, in the common duty of\\nallegiance to him who was our elder brother according to the\\nflesh.\\nIn modern times this religious foundation, the best and only sure\\none, so essential to the spiritual life of a household, has been parted\\nwith in a great measure at least so far as respects the family\\norganization. The domestic associations are no longer, by a law\\nof their very being, so closely interwoven with piety that a decrease\\nof the one involves a weakening of the other. Parental government\\nand filial submission seem grounded rather upon expediency, or the\\naccidents of feeling or circumstance, than growing directly out\\nof obedience to the authority of the Creator in his institutions. In\\nindividual examples, it is true, this element of love to God has its\\nappointed place, but they are few and scattered it must operate\\nuniversally, replacing the foundation, before the proper order and\\ntendency of things can be re-established. To show this truth most\\nstrikingly, examples are better than metaphysical discussions. The\\nBible furnishes us with examples by which we may perceive and", "height": "3504", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0015.jp2"}, "14": {"fulltext": "4 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nunderstand the true relations of this life may observe the manner\\nof its existence in the first stages of the world, and trace it, through\\ncorruption and decline, to its ennobling through the precepts and\\nfaith of Christianity.\\nIn the following brief sketches, some attempt will be made to\\npresent a useful lesson, by exhibiting groups and individuals\\ndepicted in the Bible in their domestic associations. No effort will\\nbe made to array them in a coloring of romance, for the strength\\nand beauty of simple truth in Holy Writ would be marred, rather\\nthan improved or set forth, by embellishment. The pictures will be\\nshown as familiar to every reader, that a view of them in this new\\nlight may teach us the more impressively how inseparable is regard\\nfor the rules of life contained in Scripture from the integrity and\\npreservation of the family constitution and how inevitably, Avhere\\nthis conservative principle is wanting, or its duties are neglected, the\\nmost disastrous and fatal results ensue, tending to the destruction\\nof such ties.\\nWith the first man we become acquainted with the first\\nhuman family. God himself, who created the man, and the\\nwoman for the man, joined them indissolubly in marriage, and\\nbestowed his blessing, the crown of all perfectness, upon the new\\ninstitution. The nuptials were celebrated in Paradise their home\\nand possession they were alone of all their kind, yet felt no want,\\nfor, their union being complete, they were sufficient for each other.\\nInstead of communion with other human beings, by which their\\nknowledge might have been extended and their faculties of enjoy-\\nment enlarged, they enjoyed the familiar presence of the Deity, and\\nconverse with Him. The fountain supplying the aliment of their\\nspiritual nature was ever at hand, and inexhaustible nor had they\\nany physical need for which the prodigal bounty of their Creator\\nhad not provided. They needed the shelter of no roof save the clear\\ncanopy of the sky, no covering but the innocence that enwrapped\\nthem as with a robe of light. Pure and serene, as the heaven", "height": "3520", "width": "2364", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0016.jp2"}, "15": {"fulltext": "THE FIRST HUMAN FAMILY. 5\\naround and above them, was their life before God and in each\\nother.\\nThus was this first example a perfect model of the true conjugal\\nlife, contemplated in its original constitution grounded in the favor\\nof God, embracing all the members of the family in its expanding\\ncircle, and furnishing an exhaustless spring of joy in the unselfish\\naspirations of each for the other, towards the Source of all happiness.\\nThe Love which is the essential being of God, and shineth ever in\\nthe zenith of eternity, was the life and light of the limited sphere in\\nwhich were placed the ancestors of the race of mankind. They\\nbreathed and moved in a benignant atmosphere the smile of\\nDivine benevolence encircled them there was naught to mar their\\ncomplacency in each other, and the inferior creation rendered\\ninvoluntary homage to the image of God in which they were made.\\nSo attractive has this picture of primitive innocence and virtue been\\nfound, that in different ages poets have delighted to throw around\\nit the graces of fancy, and dwell lovingly on the ideal of a happiness\\nsuch as the world has never seen since such as has never since\\nbeen delineated by the imagination. The descriptions given by\\nMilton of the purity and felicity of the first pair, which linger so\\npleasingly in the memory, were but expressions of the idea we\\ngather from the Bible as were the pictures of elder poets. In the\\nAdam of the Italian poet Andreini, the Mystery or Sacred Drama\\nwhich first suggested to Milton the idea of Paradise Lost, the\\nScriptural delineation is gracefully drawn out the utterance of\\naffection and grateful happiness being most appropriate to the pure\\npeace of a state of innocence, while the evil spirit who looks on,\\nwith jealous leer malign, can but envy the joy he is yet unable\\nto disturb, and fly in shame and rage from the hateful spectacle of\\nhuman piety.\\nBy the first sin, this pure atmosphere of love was troubled this\\ncloudless heaven overcast. With the desolation of that first spiritual\\nbereavement, when aspiration failed to reach the high companion-", "height": "3500", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0017.jp2"}, "16": {"fulltext": "6 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nship from which they had fallen, and the orphaned soul all\\nmournfully sat down among the senses, came another strange and\\nnot less bitter experience of fallen humanity, the interruption of\\nconfidence in themselves and in each other. The shame which was\\nthe first consequence of their guilt expressed this reproach and\\nremorse, as did their hiding from the presence of the Lord their\\nconsciousness of separation from him the two-fold and wide-\\nextending consequence of transgression thus being made known by\\nanticipations of coming woe, felt through the two strongest prin-\\nciples of their nature\\nTheir expulsion from the garden where they had enjoyed intimate\\ncommunion with their Maker, to wander in search of shelter, and\\nwrings subsistence bv toil from the earth cursed for man s sake, was\\nin appropriate significance of their spiritual exile. Divine mercy\\ndid not abandon the fallen pair. But the original beauty and glory\\nof then state, in their relations to one another, were lost for them\\nbeyond the hope of recovery. The fatal jarring, by the forfeiture\\nof innocence, of the chord from which had sounded the sweetest\\nmusic of humanity, brought discord into their life the man\\naccused the woman before the Judge, as the cause of his disobedi-\\nence and for the perfect unity for which their nature had been\\nformed, and which was now broken and destroyed by sin, were\\nsubstituted the relations of authority and subjection. Their new\\ncondition, so sadly contrasted with the first, was to be\\nA monumental, melancholy gloom\\nSeen down all ages\\nalthough pleasures as well as sorrows belonged to it, and a way was\\npointed out to prevent the ultimate tendencies of sin and loss. The\\nmother of our race taking in all humility her lot of self-sacrifice and\\nsubmission, and Adam tilling the ground whence he was taken, saw\\nthe gradual development of the consequences of the Fall. The\\nbirth of sons completed the circle of the first family, and religious", "height": "3520", "width": "2332", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0018.jp2"}, "17": {"fulltext": "THE FIRST HUMAN FAMILY.\\nhope, founded on the promise of a Seed that was to bruise the Ser-\\npent s head, sprang up in the heart of Eve with the sight of her\\nfirst-born. But righteous Abel fell by the hand of Cain, and the\\nmurderer became a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth. Deep\\nmust have been the anguish of those parental hearts, and bitter the\\nremorse with which they watched the fearful unfolding of the curse\\ntheir guilt had drawn down with which they listened to the\\nfirst audible gathering of the groans of a ruined posterity.\\nTheir struggles or sufferings are not recorded. Only in the brief\\noutline of their history that follows are we permitted to see that the\\nhope, almost extinguished at Abel s death, was renewed at the birth\\nof Seth the gift of God in his stead the progenitor of the Seed in\\nwhom was to be accomplished the work of man s restoration.", "height": "3492", "width": "2252", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0019.jp2"}, "18": {"fulltext": "II.\\nTHE FAMILY OF NOAH.\\nThe families of the earth had grown corrupt before God, and\\nfilled with violence but Noah found favor, because he was a just\\nman, and lived in obedience to his Maker. He was given at his\\nbirth a name that signified repose, or refreshing, perhaps by the\\nspirit of prophecy, revealing his extraordinary destiny, and the\\nblessings that were to flow through him to his posterity. Having\\nthe righteousness of faith, he enjoyed the Divine protection and\\nsupport, both during the progress of human corruption, and when,\\nby reason of the great wickedness that filled the earth, the end\\nof all flesh was come, and everything wherein was the breath of\\nlife was to be destroyed from under heaven. Noah and his wife,\\nand his sons, and his sons wives, were appointed to be saved in the\\nark, when the windows of heaven were opened, and the fountains\\nof the great deer were broken up, and all the high hills under the\\nwhole heaven were covered. In the enumeration of the persons\\nwho took refuge in the Ark, it should be remarked that Noah and\\nhis three sons had each but one wife although the destruction\\nimpending over the whole race of mankind, and their want of\\nchildren as yet for their sons were not born till after the flood\\nmight have excused polygamy, could it have been excused. They\\nacted, doubtless, under the immediate direction of the Deity, who\\nthus testified his regard for the sacredness of the institution He had\\nestablished in Paradise.\\nAfter the warning given so many years before, the tedious\\nbuilding of the vessel, and the preparations at which the unbelieving\\nscoffed and sneered while Noah did according to all that the", "height": "3520", "width": "2332", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0020.jp2"}, "19": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF NOAH. 9\\nLord commanded him the day of wrath arrived the obedient\\nfamily were shut in, and the waters increased upon the earth.\\nSole, mid the storms, above the drear abyss,\\nMid rolling thunders, and the whirl of winds,\\nAnd lightning s flash, revered and safe from all,\\nThe ark went on while swelling o er the cries\\nOf drowning men, and the resounding roar\\nOf billows lashed to rage, from hearts within\\nRose the loud hymn to Heaven s all-ruling Lord.\\nAnd fervent indeed must have been the tribute of gratitude that\\nascended to the Father of mercy, as, amid a world s destruction, the\\nark, bearing its freight of rescued souls, floated over the dark waste\\nof waters.\\nAs in Adam and Eve we saw an example of the disruption of\\nthe ties ordained in the primary constitution of a family, the\\nconfusion of its relations, and the disturbance of its peace by\\ndisobedience to the Divine command in that of Noah we may see\\nhow the principles essential to its life and happiness were preserved\\nfrom the contamination of universal corruption, and may observe\\nthe restoration of that peace, so far as it can be restored in this\\nmortal state, by self-denying and persistent obedience. Thus must\\nthe world-old truth, that evil produces its natural fruits, while the\\ntendency of virtue is to elevate and bless, be illustrated in the daily\\nexperience of life. May we emulate the righteous Patriarch, whose\\nsoul was still cleaving to good in the midst of a perverse generation\\nNo more floods are to desolate the earth but the waters of\\nperil and sorrow are often rising around us, and we are only safe\\nwhen borne above them in the ark of salvation.\\nThe waters were abated, and returned from off the face of the\\nearth. The saved family went forth from the ark, and Noah\\nFrom The Deluge of Gabriello Chiabrera.\\n1*", "height": "3504", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0021.jp2"}, "20": {"fulltext": "10 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nbuilded an altar unto the Lord, and took of every clean beast and\\nof every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. This\\npassage strikingly shows the religious principle as the spring of his\\nactions. His first act, on his deliverance from danger, was thus to\\nexpress his gratitude to the Power who had preserved him so\\nwondrously. The sole inheritor and lord of this lower world\\nventured not to take possession of the rich domain lying at his feet,\\nbefore he had paid his vows of fealty to the Sovereign from whom\\nhe received all. His children joined in the service of praise and\\nthanksgiving. The only surviving family of the whole human\\nrace was thus assembled and consecrated to God and God\\nestablished his covenant with them, and placed his bow in the cloud\\nfor a token, and bestowed on them his blessing, saying, Be\\nfruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth. The gift of every\\nbeast of the earth, and every fowl of the air, and the fishes of the\\nsea, and the green herb, and every moving thing, was formally\\nmade over to them and the smile of Divine favor, brighter than\\nthe sun, beaming once more in a cloudless heaven, shone upon this\\nnew beginning of the race. Happy, had the religious principles\\ninstilled and cultivated by Noah, with such careful training, produced\\ncongenial fruits in all the members of his family But the blight\\nof Adam s sin was not yet removed the root of wickedness not\\nyet destroyed the curse not yet taken away. The pious father\\nhad been seen righteous before the Lord in an evil generation two\\nvirtuous sons were the joy of his heart, but in Ham prevailed the\\nspirit of unkindness and mockery; and the prophetic curse pro-\\nnounced on his son was visited upon his descendants.\\nNoah lived after the flood three hundred and fifty years, and\\ndied at the age of nine hundred and fifty. He saw the generations\\nof his sons, and the division of the land after their families, and the\\nworking of the blessing he had received the blessing continued\\nfrom father to son, unto thousands of those who love God, and keep\\nhis commandments.", "height": "3520", "width": "2324", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0022.jp2"}, "21": {"fulltext": "III.\\nTHE FAMILY OF ABRAHAM.\\nAmong the nations that overspread the earth after the flood, the\\nfamilies of the patriarchs stood separate and distinguished by the\\npeculiarity of their religious faith. They were honored by special\\nrevelations from time to time, and enjoyed the privilege of familiar\\nintercourse with the Deity, being the chosen objects of his protec-\\ntion and blessing. They were called of God to be unlike those\\naround them, and appointed for the preservation of the true\\nknowledge and worship of Him, and the establishment of religion\\nupon earth. The pastoral simplicity of their lives, and their migra-\\ntory habits, were calculated to favor their state of immediate\\ndependence on Him by whose revealed will their movements were\\ndirected.\\nAbraham, the first and most eminent of the patriarchs, whose\\nname has figured in eastern traditions -and whose remarkable\\nhistory is given in the simple narrative of the Book of Genesis\\nwas one of a pastoral family dwelling in Ur of the Chaldees, a\\nregion which afterwards became the seat of the great Babylonian\\nmonarchy. The marriages of Abram and Nahor are mentioned as\\nhaving taken place during their residence there Haran, the father\\nof Lot, dying before his father Terah in the land of his nativity.\\nThe migration of Terah and all his family from Ur of the Chaldees\\nfollowed and they fixed their new settlement at Haran, where\\nTerah afterwards died.\\nThe Bible does not inform us how Abram first acquired his\\nknowledge of the unity and providence of the Deity, nor what was", "height": "3500", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0023.jp2"}, "22": {"fulltext": "12 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nthe belief of his tribe and family. The legends of other nations\\nrepresent Terah as an idolater, and even as a maker of images.\\nOne of these traditionary fictions relates the surprise of Abram on\\nseeing one of the images broken by an accidental fall, and the\\nreasoning in his own heart, by which he became convinced that a\\ndeity incapable of saving itself from humiliation and injury, could\\nnot be a proper object of worship. Another, related in the History\\nof the Jews, represents him walking by night over the spacious\\nplain of Chaldea, gazing upon the stars of heaven, the adoration of\\nwhich was a primitive form of idolatry, and observing the wonderful\\nbeauty of the planet Venus. Behold, said he within himself,\\nthe God and Lord of the universe but the star set and disap-\\npeared And Abram felt that the Lord of the universe could not\\nthus be liable to change. Shortly after, he beheld the moon at\\nthe full Lo, he cried the Divine Creator\u00e2\u0080\u0094 the manifest\\nDeity but the moon sank below the horizon and Abram made\\nthe same reflection as at the setting of the evening star. All the\\nrest of the night he passed in profound rumination at sunrise he\\nstood before the gates of Babylon, and saw the whole people pros-\\ntrate in adoration. Wondrous orb he exclaimed, thou surely\\nart the Creator and Ruler of all nature but thou, too, hastest\\nlike the rest to thy setting neither then art thou my Creator, my\\nLord, nor my God\\nAlthough we know not in what manner the idea of the one\\nSupreme Creator was first acquired by the patriarch, it is pleasing\\nto contemplate him, at this period of his life, alone among those\\naround him as a worshipper of the revealed God. All the de-\\nscendants of the sons of Noah, it is probable, had preserved some\\nnotion of His nature and power, though darkened and corrupted in\\ntheir traditions, and mingled with their veneration for those works of\\nHis hands, the aspect of which most forcibly impressed their senses.\\nIt is not likely that they had any worthy conception of the moral\\nattributes of the Deity. They worshipped, therefore, whatever, to", "height": "3520", "width": "2316", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0024.jp2"}, "23": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ABRAHAM. 13\\ntheir perverted imagination, might seem to represent this unknown\\nand incomprehensible Being.\\nThe time came when Abram, the destined father of a family and\\ntribe chosen from among the families of earth, was to separate him-\\nself from his country, and his kindred, and his father s house. The\\nmysterious command was laid upon him, and the promise given, of\\nwhich then there appeared little prospect of fulfilment for Sarai\\nhad no children. The promise I will make of thee a great\\nnation, and will bless thee, and make thy name great was one\\nthat comprehended every desire of a pastoral chieftain of that age.\\nHow great must have been the faith, which, looking beyond the\\nmost discouraging improbabilities, relied absolutely and implicitly\\non the Divine word Abram doubted not, questioned not his\\nobedience was immediate. Collecting those who constituted his\\nhousehold\u00e2\u0080\u0094 his servants and all the substance he had gathered, and\\naccompanied by Lot, his brother s son he passed across the\\nEuphrates into the land of Canaan. Their first settlement was at\\nShechem, upon the plain of Moriah, between the mountains Ebal\\nand Gerizim, where he was again favored with a vision of his\\nHeavenly Protector, and the promise that the land before him\\nshould belong to his seed and where he performed the fundamen-\\ntal duty of the chief of a clan, by building an altar unto the Lord.\\nMoving onward, probably as the native pastures were exhausted, the\\ntribe pitched their tents by a mountain eastward of Bethel in\\nevery halting-place an altar being erected, and solemn worship\\noffered to the God in whom Abram trusted, and who was the invisi-\\nble guide of his wanderings. It is worthy of notice, that through\\nall his removals, this was his first act on forming a new settlement.\\nThe blessing of the Almighty was sought, as the beginning and\\ncrowning of every enterprise, the safeguard and light of his\\ndwelling. When he returned from Egypt, whither a famiue had\\ndriven him, and journeyed to the place of his former encampment,\\nnear the site where Bethel afterwards stood, he took possession by", "height": "3492", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0025.jp2"}, "24": {"fulltext": "14 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\ngoing to the height where he had at first built an altar, and\\noffering solemn sacrifice thereon, calling upon the name of the\\nLord.\\nHow attractive is the picture given of the pastoral life of the\\nfirst patriarchs, passing from one pleasant locality to another, pitch-\\ning their tents by some grove or fountain, and acquiring increase of\\nwealth wherever they went under the abiding influence of the\\nblessing borne with them They were rich in flocks and herds\\nsheep and oxen, and camels and asses, and tents, and men-servants\\nand maid-servants the simple possessions naturally exchanged and\\naccumulated in a primitive state of society. Besides these, Abram\\nhad silver and gold he was prosperous, for his substance had\\nincreased greatly during his visit in Egypt but it does not appear\\nthat wealth made him arrogant, or rendered him less disposed to\\nrespect the claims of others. When it became evident, by reason\\nof the increase of Lot s riches also, that they could no longer dwell\\ntogether without the continuance of strife between their herdsmen\\nand that the land was not able to bear them for their sub-\\nstance was great Abram sought not to encroach on the pastures\\nto which the stock of cattle belonging to Lot had an equal\\nright with himself, but proposed a division of the land, and an\\namicable separation. He gave the choice to his brother s son,\\nthough he might have claimed it on the score of seniority, and the\\ngrant of the Creator. It was generous, therefore, as well as expres-\\nsive of his desire to do justly to ask no advantage for himself.\\nHe bids Lot select the portion he would, inhabit If thou wilt take\\nthe left hand, then I will go to the right or if thou depart to the\\nright hand, then I will go to the left. The fertile and well-watered\\nvalley of the Jordan, blooming as the garden of the Lord, attracted\\nthe eyes of Lot, and he took his departure eastward, to establish\\nhis independent settlement among the cities of the plain. Abram\\nremained in Canaan. After the departure of Lot, the Divine grant\\nof the land was renewed to him and to his seed. He was com-", "height": "3520", "width": "2312", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0026.jp2"}, "25": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ABRAHAM. 15\\nmanded to survey the country from north to south, and from its\\neastern to its western boundaries to walk through the length\\nand breadth of the land, and to regard it as the heritage of his\\nposterity, which should be countless as the dust of the earth.\\nThe chief was not indifferent, in his own prosperity, to the\\ndangers that beset his kinsman. When informed by a fugitive of\\nthe capture of Lot by invaders of the country, he made haste,\\nwith three hundred and eighteen of his trained servants, to pursue\\nthe enemy; and falling on them by night, rescued Lot and the\\nother captives, and wrested from them the booty they had taken.\\nThe conqueror, returning from this excursion, was met by the grate-\\nful monarch whose enemies he had routed, and received the blessing\\nof Melchisedek, who presented him and his troops with the refresh-\\nment of bread and wine. The magnanimity of Abram, and his\\njealous regard for the honor of God, are strikingly shown in his\\nanswer to the generous proposal of the king of Sodom, that he\\nshould take all the spoil, of which he had given a tenth part to\\nthe royal priest. He refuses to retain any part, from a thread\\neven to a shoe-latchet, consenting only that the young men, not of\\nhis household, who had joined his expedition, should receive their\\nportion. He would not have it supposed that he had been in-\\nfluenced by a wish to gain booty for himself; nor would he permit\\none of the native chiefs to boast that his gifts had contributed to his\\nwealth. He was the vassal only of the Most High, and would\\nacknowledge obligation to no other benefactor.\\nNotwithstanding- the strength of his faith, the mind of the\\npatriarch was disturbed by the apparent prospect owing to his\\nwant of an heir that his name and dignity would pass into another\\nline. What were his possessions worth in view of the near extinc-\\ntion of his immediate family, and the failure of his hopes of a long\\nline of descendants The condescending assurance given in the\\nDivine vision, and the affecting appeal of Abram, show the discon-\\ntent and apprehension he had cherished. The natural feeling is not", "height": "3492", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0027.jp2"}, "26": {"fulltext": "16 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nreproved but he is comforted, and his faith sustained, by a formal\\nratification of the covenant, according to the usage of primitive\\nnations. At the setting of the sun, in a deep sleep, and amidst a\\nhorror of great darkness the patriarch heard the mysterious voice\\nannounce the destiny of his posterity and saw the symbol of\\nDeity the smoke and fire pass between the divided victims, over\\nwhich he had kept watch the covenant being thus solemnly ratified,\\nas between man and man.\\nBut little is said in the Scriptures, by which we may learn the\\ncharacter of Sarai. She appears to have been wanting in the faith\\nso eminent in her husband, and which was counted unto him for\\nrighteousness. Despairing of the fulfilment of the promise so often\\nand so solemnly repeated, she ventures to propose means for\\nbringing about the desired accomplishment. Perhaps the annoy-\\nances she afterwards suffered from the insolent behavior of her maid,\\nthe natural consequence of her folly, were intended as a reproof for\\nher want of trust, and irreverent impatience. She seems to have\\nbeen of a haughty and imperious temper, and felt bitterly the arro-\\ngant insults of the servant whom she had elevated to the dignity of\\na wife. She complains to her husband of the humiliating treatment\\nshe has received, and lays to his charge the responsibility. The\\nLord judge, she says, between me and thee. The appeal was\\nanswered by Abram with permission to his wife to do with her maid\\nas she pleased. He exhibits none of the feeling shown on a subse-\\nquent occasion, when the dissensions in his family rendered it\\nnecessary for him to part with his son Ishmael for it is evident he\\nhad not wronged Sarai by any transfer of his affections.\\nThe jealous pride of the mistress, roused by the presumptuous\\nconduct of Hagar, prompts her to treatment so harsh that the slave\\nflies from the oppression, and wanders in the wilderness. Careless\\nof her own fate, or that of her unborn child, she desires only to\\nescape from present evil she can give no answer to the angel who\\nasks whither she would go, but confesses that she has fled from the", "height": "3520", "width": "2316", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0028.jp2"}, "27": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ABRAHAM. 17\\nface of her mistress. It is a touching trait in the character of\\nHagar, that she makes no attempt to justify herself by complaint of\\nthe unkind usage she has received indeed the consciousness of the\\npresence and omniscience of God, which she expresses hi the name\\ngiven to Him who spake to her seems to imply that her thoughts\\ndwelt on her own faults. The angel comforts her by an assurance\\nthat her affliction has been regarded, and a promise of numerous\\ndescendants and bids her return and submit herself to lawful\\nauthority.\\nThe race of which the Messiah was to be born must be beyond\\nevery possible impeachment of its legitimacy and after the lapse\\nof fourteen years another revelation renews the covenant and the\\nnames of Abram and Sarai are changed by the Divine command,\\nin token of their parentage of many nations. At the announcement\\nthat the covenant is to be established with the son whom Sarah was\\nto bear, the father s love for his first-born is touchingly exhibited.\\nHis whole heart is poured out in the prayer for Ishmael. The\\nblessing is to be inherited by one unborn. What should become of\\nthe boy whose birth had first brought joy to his tent in whom his\\nsoul was bound up The strength of the parental feeling in\\nAbraham s bosom is thus shown, in his tender solicitude for the\\nchild who had first awakened it. His prayer is answered by the\\npromise of the blessing, though a subordinate one, to Ishmael.\\nThe pastoral simplicity of the world s infancy comes before us, as\\nwe contemplate the picture presented in the eighteenth chapter of\\nGenesis of the aged patriarch sitting in his tent-door in the heat\\nof the day, the approach of the three strangers, and his reception of\\nthem with oriental hospitality. We are not told if Abraham\\nperceived at first sight the real character of the mysterious visitors,\\nor if the truth was revealed to him by any after intimation but it is\\nprobable that his lowly obeisance, when he ran to meet them from\\nthe tent-door, and invited thern to rest under the tree and refresh\\nthemselves, was an act of respect rather than of worship. The", "height": "3504", "width": "2260", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0029.jp2"}, "28": {"fulltext": "18 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nquick preparations for their entertainment, in which the master and\\nmistress are active as well as their servants, and the particulars\\nrelated, strongly mark the simple and generous character of that\\nancient hospitality. The meal was partaken of under the spreading\\ntree which shaded the tent and then the chief of the three strangers\\nrenewed the promise of a son before given, and fixed the time of his\\nbirth. The laughter of Sarah, who heard this promise in the tent-\\ndoor behind, indicated the unbelief of her heart, and was reproved,\\nthough mildly, by the Almighty visitant.\\nIt is remarkable, that by a few words in the verses succeeding,\\nlight is thrown upon the character of both Abraham and Sarah in\\ntheir domestic relations. The patriarch s habitual exercise of due\\nauthority over his household, and pious zeal in instructing them, is\\nattested by the Lord in the disclosure of his gracious purpose\\ntowards him. I know him, that he will command his children\\nand his household after him, is not said as a reason for the\\nbestowal of the blessing at first promised for the very fitness to\\nreceive it was a gift from above but it was part of the plan of\\nbenevolence. The father of the faithful had once listened to the\\npersuasions of his wife, and obeyed them in espousing Hagar\\ninstances of misconduct and criminal distrust of God s protection\\nthrough scenes of peril, are also recorded of him but his heart, by\\nthe Divine aid, was set to do that which was right, and the same\\ngrace would be granted to keep him faithful to the end, and to\\ncause his descendants to keep the way of the Lord. It appears\\nfrom several particulars mentioned, that the patriarch was naturally\\ndisposed to exercise his own judgment in shaping his course. His\\ndisingenuous equivocation concerning his relations to Sarah, in\\nEgypt and in Gerar, strongly evinces this tendency but under the\\nappointed discipline, these corrupt inclinations were gradually over-\\ncome. The last severe ordeal through which he was called to pass\\nin the sacrifice required of his only son was met in a manner\\nthat showed him then advancer, in the life of faith bevond the weak-", "height": "3520", "width": "2304", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0030.jp2"}, "29": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ABRAHAM. 19\\nness which had marked its early growth and thenceforward we hear\\nof no more doubts or shortcomings.\\nThe expression of Sarah in the eighteenth chapter, calling\\nAbraham my lord, seems to be referred to by St. Peter in his\\ncommendation of her obedience to him. The life of this couple\\ngrowing old in faithful affection, and in expectation of the blessing\\nmysteriously promised is simply and beautifully delineated. Sarah\\nwas subject to Abraham as her head, superior, and guide. Abraham,\\nthe friend of God, leaned on the Divine counsel and support.\\nThe son born to them the child of promise the heir of unknown\\nblessing the channel of mercy fore -ordained for the whole race\\nof mankind, was a gift received from the hand of the Creator, and\\nunspeakably precious. The circle of the family life was thus com-\\nplete. The bondwoman and her son had no proper part therein\\nand they were to be removed from the association. The custom of\\nmen in that primitive age allowing a plurality of wives, it was not\\nexpressly censured but that the practice was a violation of the\\nprinciple on which the marriage relation was founded, and tended\\nto the subversion of domestic comfort and peace, is plain from the\\nexamples in the case of the patriarchs. Abraham was doomed to\\nsuffer the consequences of his own fault, by the necessity of parting\\nwith the son borne to him by Hagar. The haughty spirit of Sarah\\ncould ill brook the boyish insolence of Ishmael and remembering\\nAbraham s former yielding to her complaints, she demanded\\nperemptorily the expulsion of the boy and his mother. It was\\nhard for the father to send from him the child he had first loved,\\nand in whose opening faculties, wild as his nature was, he felt a\\nparent s pride. The thing was very grievous in his sight and\\nin his anguish he doubtless sought the direction of that great\\nBeing by whom hitherto his steps had been guided. The answer,\\ncouched in gracious and comforting terms, commands him to comply\\nwith the apparently unreasonable demand, and to yield to his wife\\nthe unlimited control over her servant assigned her by the usage of", "height": "3508", "width": "2256", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0031.jp2"}, "30": {"fulltext": "20 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\npastoral tribes. An intimation is added of blessing destined Ishmael\\nfor Abraham s sake and Abraham, obedient to the Divine vision,\\nrose up early to make preparations for the departure of the two.\\nThere is- something unspeakably touching in the very simplicity of\\nthe account, which leaves room for imagination to dwell upon the\\nmelancholy scene. The aged and affectionate father, placing in\\nHagar s hands the provisions which could sustain them only a brief\\nway on their lonely journey, and sorrowing that he should see the\\nface of his child no more the Egyptian mother, bowed down in\\nhumiliation for this abrupt dismission from the home that had been\\nhers so long perhaps reproaching herself for the unseemly pride\\nand arrogance which so provoked her mistress and the spirited\\nlad, who would naturally feel the separation less keenly, in his\\nyouthful love of adventure, to be indulged without restraint in the\\nwild and uninhabited districts where they were to seek their fortune.\\nWhat a scene, with its deep pathos, for the embellishment of\\npoetry We may well believe that tears in abundance were shed\\nas the patriarch bade farewell to Hagar, and strained his son for the\\nlast time to his bosom in agonized embrace. The heart of Sarah\\nmust have melted at the sight of his grief, and her anger have\\ngiven way to a willingness for reconciliation. She could not see the\\nsuffering of him she loved she could not see the handmaid who\\nhad served her so long, the boy who had grown from infancy by\\nher side, go forth from her door, driven thence by her severity, to\\nwander through the world, without a revulsion of feeling. But a\\nhigher purpose than hers was to be accomplished and the words\\nshe had uttered in anger were exponents of the decree fulfilled in\\nafter ages. Abraham obeyed, not the imperious demand of his\\nwife, but the Divine direction and the consciousness of this, and\\nthat he was committing Ishmael, not to the uncertainties of a dreary\\nfuture, but to the care of One who had promised to protect him,\\ntook away from the bitterness of parting. The fervent prayer\\nwith which he commended the boy to the keeping of his Heavenly", "height": "3520", "width": "2316", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0032.jp2"}, "31": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ABRAHAM. 21\\nFather, ascended upwards from his pious heart on the wings of faith,\\nand was heard. Then the Egyptian and her son went forth from\\nthe patriarch s dwelling.\\nThe wandering of the outcast Hagar and Ishmael in the wilder-\\nness their sufferings from the failure of the supply of water, and\\nthe anguish of the mother, who lays down her child to die, and\\nretires to weep, that she may not behold his last agonies are\\nrecounted in a description which has never been surpassed in simple\\npathos. Here again is a scene for the artist, whose fancy could add\\nno coloring more striking than is presented. The familiar story,\\nwith its typical meaning, need not be dwelt upon here, as the Egyp-\\ntian and her son were no longer a portion of the family of Abraham.\\nWhen the command came the keenest trial to the parental feel-\\ning as well as to the faith of Abraham to offer up Isaac in sacri-\\nfice, we read of no struggle nor hesitation, as in the case of Ishmael.\\nHe utters no murmur, though bidden to cut short, with his own\\nhand, the life on which his expectation depended of a numerous\\nposterity, and the blessing which, through him, was to pervade the\\nwhole earth. As before, after the vision, he rose up early in the\\nmorning, and prepared for his journey, having prepared wood for\\nthe burnt-offering. Those who were with him knew not of his\\nintention and it is not likely that he confided the matter to Sarah,\\nwhose feebler faith and maternal anxiety might have interposed\\nobstacles. Through the journey which did not terminate with\\ntheir arrival at Mount Moriah till the third day there appears no\\nobjection or want of alacrity on his part to put the fearful command\\nin execution. t This is explained by the Apostle, who says, Abraham\\nbelieved God could raise his son from the dead and that he\\nexpected this is evident from the expression to the young men, that\\nhe and Isaac would return to them after their worship. He did\\nnot doubt the ultimate fulfilment of the promises and the mira-\\nculous restoration of his son seemed a matter of course, since He\\nwho could not lie had said In Isaac shall thy seed be called.", "height": "3516", "width": "2280", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0033.jp2"}, "32": {"fulltext": "22 FAMILY pictures from the bible.\\nWhen it became necessary to communicate to Isaac his fatal pur-\\npose, no resistance was offered by the destined victim no shudder-\\ning^ of nature prompted to avert the blow. How strikingly does\\nthis circumstance show the strict religious training of the child of\\npromise by Abraham The youth might have remonstrated against\\nhis father s incurring the guilt of murder he might have urged\\nthe illegality of human sacrifice, or even questioned the right of\\nthe prophet-patriarch on the authority of a vision seen by none\\nbut lumself to immolate his son. Isaac was grown to manhood,\\nand would probably have surpassed his aged father in strength, had\\nhe chosen to escape or defend his life. But he had been educated\\nin the principles of obedience and absolute submission to heavenly\\nordinances. The instructions received from his father s lips had fitted\\nhim to understand the obligations of the command and it is\\nreasonable to suppose that Abraham communicated to him his own\\nhopes of his restoration. He yielded himself voluntarily, to be\\nbound and laid on the altar, as did the Lamb of God, whom, by\\nthe act, he typified.\\nNot only was Abraham thus worthy in his family relations of\\nbeing the great example of faith and obedience to his posterity and\\nthe world, but he appears equally exemplary in other situations.\\nWhat can be more sublime than his expostulation with the Deity to\\navert the impending fate of the Cities of the Plain And how\\nexalted is the idea of the justice and mercy of the Infinite conveyed\\nby the scene His position among the princes of adjoining territo-\\nries was a highly honorable one. He was a mighty prince among\\nthem, and their esteem was often testified by gifts. Abimelech, the\\nKing of Gerar, sought to form with him a treaty of amity, to\\ncontinue inviolable to his descendants for he says God is with\\nthee in all that thou doest. He had not forgotten, in his abounding\\nprosperity, to ascribe all to the favor of Him from whom cometh\\nevery good thing and it is not unlikely that from him many of the\\nneighboring chiefs learned the worship of the true God.", "height": "3548", "width": "2316", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0034.jp2"}, "33": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ABRAHAM. 2 b\\nThe expression so often used in Scripture, gathered to his\\nfathers, appears to have a meaning which throws light upon the\\ncustoms of primitive ages. We learn that each tribe or family had\\nits own place of burial sometimes a spacious sepulchre, hewn from\\nthe rock, and divided into several chambers, where the dust of\\nmany branches of the clan might be deposited. The chief had\\nhere his appointed place, and round him were assembled the chil-\\ndren who came one by one to moulder at his side. Thus the family\\nunion was preserved even in the grave. No stranger dust was\\npermitted to mingle with the kindred remains and from generation\\nto generation the descendants of the same progenitor occupied their\\nlast resting-place together. Thus Abraham, when Sarah died,\\napplied to the chiefs of the clan of Heth to purchase a cemetery\\nfor as yet he had been a stranger and a sojourner, and in his\\nwandering life had possessed no place to bury his dead. His home\\nwas fixed now in the land of Canaan and there was to be the\\nsacred deposit, which he would guard with jealous care from foreign\\nintrusion. He declines the complimentary offer of the. chiefs, of\\npermission to bury his dead in the choicest of their own national\\nsepulchres he refuses to accept as a gift from Ephron the cave and\\nfield he had selected as suitable for the purpose, though it was prof-\\nfered publicly, as a mark of high respect. He will have this sacred\\npossession isolated from all others, and takes it only on condition of\\nbeing permitted to pay the price to its owner. The bargain is\\nratified, and the field secured to him, with its rock and the trees\\nthat were to shade the graves of his household.\\nIn widowed estate lived the patriarch after the death of his wife,\\noccupied with the care and education of his son. When the time\\ncame that a wife should be provided for Isaac, the same determina-\\ntion to keep his stock separate from the surrounding tribes, by\\navoiding their alliance, is manifested. In the ancient Mesopotamian\\nsettlement, the children of his brother Nahor yet live, and among\\nhis kindred there the patriarch determines to choose a wife for his", "height": "3504", "width": "2188", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0035.jp2"}, "34": {"fulltext": "24 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nson. His eldest and chief servant supposed to be Eliezer of\\nDamascus, the next in rank in the tribe, who was once his heir\\npresumptive is directed to depart on the mission, and is required\\nto pledge a solemn oath that in no case shall the wife be chosen\\nfrom the daughters of the Canaanites. Almost equally strong is\\nhis repeated command, that Isaac shall not be conducted back to\\nthe land of his own birth, even though the kinswoman selected\\nshould refuse to come and meet him in Canaan. In obedience to\\nthe Heavenly mandate, he had quitted the country of his nativity\\nand his father s house Palestine, by Divine grant, was the patri-\\nmony of his descendants and the merging of his family with those\\nof his kindred, which would be the consequence of return to Meso-\\npotamia, was not less to be dreaded than a heathen alliance. In\\nthis anxiety for the seclusion and isolation of his own stock, it is\\nnot possible to say how much of the pride of an independent chief-\\ntain mingled with Abraham s regard to the commandment intrusted\\nto him. A desire to maintain his own dignity as the parent of a\\nnation may have had some influence but his chief motive was the\\nconviction of his duty to preserve integrity of descent in a line from,\\nwhich was to spring the mysterious Seed promised to the first\\nmother. That this was so is evident from the confidence he\\nexpresses in the success of the mission. The Lord God of\\nHeaven He shall send his angel before thee.\\nThe departure of the servant, his arrival at the city of Nahor,\\nand meeting with the lovely daughter of Bethuel that beautiful\\nhistory so rich in romantic interest and instructive lessoning\\nbelongs not strictly to this chapter. The bride in her modest\\nbeauty was received into Abraham s family, and on her first arrival\\nat the encampment, conducted to the tent of Sarah, the place\\nassigned to the chief female in the tribe.\\nThe line of the Messiah being thus cared for, and Isaac constituted\\nthe sole heir to all the wealth of Abraham, the patriarch married\\nagain. But his other children, having received gifts from him, were", "height": "3520", "width": "2216", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0036.jp2"}, "35": {"fulltext": "TIIE FAMILY OF ABRAHAM. 25\\nsent away into the east country nor were their descendants, though\\nnoticed in the Hebrew annals, considered as belonging to the same\\nstock with the Jews. Ishmael, indeed, joined with Isaac in the last\\nduties to their father, interring his remains in the cave of Machpelah,\\nwhere the dust of Sarah reposed.\\nIn all the relations of Abraham, his sincerity and fidelity appear\\nprominent. He is thus as a husband, a parent, and as the head of\\na tribe but most of all his fealty to God is inviolate. This is the\\nfoundation of his exemplary character in respect of inferior claims.\\nHis building and sustaining of a family, and his provision for its\\ncontinuance, have reference to the fulfilment of the great purpose\\nrevealed to him, dimly and darkly it may be, but with light enough\\nto guide his own course. He rejoiced to see the day of the\\npromised Redeemer, though its full splendor did not burst on his\\nsight, but was veiled in symbols and intimations. He trusted in\\nGod, and it was counted to him for righteousness. In his tent\\nand circle the family life assumes a high and holy character a\\nsignificance beyond the ties of earth. May it not also in the life\\nof his spiritual posterity May not each, in the maintenance of\\nrelations established by Divine authority, preserve a trust Divinely\\ncommitted to be transferred with care to the children whose\\nremote destiny it must influence", "height": "3500", "width": "2164", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0037.jp2"}, "36": {"fulltext": "IV.\\nTHE FAMILY OF LOT.\\nWhen Lot separated his family from that of Abraham, with the\\ndesign of establishing his pastoral settlement elsewhere, his eyes\\nwere attracted by a rich and beautiful district of country, exceeding\\nin fertility that he was leaving. The valley through which the\\nJordan flowed, abounding in luxuriant pasturage, in fair groves and\\nblooming fields, was watered by many streams and studded with\\nflourishing cities. Pleasant to the view even as the garden of\\nthe Lord it offered every advantage for a permanent abode for\\nthe resources of the land seemed inexhaustible, and the extending\\npopulation would form a defence against the incursions of foreign\\ninvaders. Well content was the patriarch to have his home in so\\ndesirable a locality, and his encampment was formed near one of\\nthe principal towns. When the hostile army of the kings from the\\nEuphrates and Tigris swept over this broad plain, and joined battle\\nin the vale of Siddim with the confederate princes of Jordan, Lot\\nwas probably among those who strove to throw off the conqueror s\\nyoke, since he was taken prisoner and rescued by the valor of Abram.\\nThis danger over and the country delivered from invaders, there\\nseemed the fairest prospect of peace. In the patriarch s abundant\\nprosperity, perhaps he felt himself consoled for living in a city of the\\nwicked. It does not appear that by his residence in Sodom any of\\nthe inhabitants had been won over to the worship of the true God\\nyet it is intimated that he had made efforts, though without effect,\\nto stem the torrent of iniquity, and teach their duty to the reckless\\nprofligates who surrounded him. One of them bears testimony to\\nthis, and also to the fact that none in the city were like Lot in his", "height": "3564", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0038.jp2"}, "37": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF LOT. 27\\nreproachful speech This one fellow came in to sojourn, and he\\nwill needs be a judge. Thus alone in his faith and worship of\\nJehovah encompassed with wickedness all the enjoyment his\\nwealth could procure must have failed to satisfy the mind of Lot,\\nharassed incessantly with scenes of crime he was compelled to hear\\nof or witness. His thoughts must often have wandered back to the\\nhappier days of his youth to the peaceful time when he dwelt with\\nAbram in Canaan, and held with him the intercourse of congenial\\nhearts, and joined with him in worship before the altar of the Lord.\\nThose remembrances could not be effaced by the restless ambition\\nor the anxieties of his new life.* In heart Lot still honored the\\nThe train of thought here suggested brings to mind a beautiful poem by\\nMrs. Caroline Gilman, in which are expressed the involuntary feelings of the\\nAmerican back-woodsman, who, retreating into the forest, has thrown off the\\nforms of society, and would fly beyond the Sabbath. We quote the poem\\nentire\\nHe flies\\nHe seeks the moaning forest trees,\\nThe sunny prairie, or the mountain sweep,\\nThe swelling river rushing to the seas,\\nThe cataract, foaming neath the dizzy steep,\\nOr softer streams that by the green banks sleep\\nTo these he flies\\nHe lists\\nThe crackling of the springing deer,\\nThe shrill cry of the soaring waterfowl,\\nThe serpent hissing at his lone couch near,\\nThe wild bear uttering loud her hungry howl,\\nThe panther with his low expecting growl,\\nUnmoved he lists.\\nWanderer\\nBeyond the Sabbath, tell me why\\nWith eager steps you shun the haunts of men,", "height": "3508", "width": "2168", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0039.jp2"}, "38": {"fulltext": "28 FAMILY .PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nreligion lie professed, though fearful encroachments had been made\\nby principles and motives antagonistic to piety by the desire of\\nAnd from the music of the church bells fly,\\nThat, floating sweetly o er your native glen,\\nCall you to worship by their chime again 1\\nSay, wanderer, why?\\nYou know\\nYou feel, beneath the woodland skies,\\nWhen comes the seventh day of sacred rest,\\nDeep wells of fond remembrance struggling rise\\nWithin the caverns of your rocky breast\\nA gush of thought, like visions of the blest,\\nAt times you know.\\nAnd you\\nWill turn, and mark the record tree\\nIn stealthy silence, and a gentle prayer\\nUnconsciously will struggle to get free,\\nAnd you will feel there is a purer air,\\nMore holy stillness over nature fair,\\nWhich softens you.\\nHow sweet\\nThe strain of skyey minstrelsy,\\nThat floats above you in the wild bird s song\\nSeems it to you the hymn of infancy,\\nBorne on the breezes of remembrance long,\\nWhen you were foremost in the Sabbath throng\\nThose strains were sweet\\nSuch tones\\nAre swelling yet in many a spot,\\nSacredly twining out with praise and joy\\nAnd there s a group, Oh, they forget you not,\\nWho prayers and tears for you, for you employ\\nAnd hopes that even time cannot destroy,\\nAre in their tones.", "height": "3552", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0040.jp2"}, "39": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF LOT. 29\\nworldly riches and power. His righteous soul was vexed from day\\nto day with the conversation of the wicked yet he did not resolve\\nto leave all and come out from among them. The passage God\\nremembered Abraham and sent Lot out of the midst of the over-\\nthrow gives us reason to believe that the intercession of Abraham\\nsaved him from being involved in the ruin of his guilty fellow-citizens.\\nWhen the angels led him forth from the city, the comment of the\\nsacred historian is the Lord being merciful unto him and his\\nown acknowledgment testifies Thou hast magnified thy mercy,\\nwhich thou hast showed unto me in saving my life thus implying\\na consciousness of having deserved to suffer the penalty escaped.\\nThe family of Lot consisted of several persons but the sacred\\nThey call,\\nThey call you, rover, back again\\nThere is a mound beneath your village spire,\\nWhere, touched by love, your tears would fall like rain\\nIt shields a holy man, your aged sire,\\nWho sought in life to curb your youthful fire,\\nHear his death call\\nIn vain\\nAlas you heard not e en that call\\nProudly you stand upon the red man s ground,\\nAnd woman s tears, that slow and silent fall,\\nSlighted, from your resolved breast rebound,\\nYour free words through the woodland depths resound,\\nHer call is vain\\nFarewell\\nFor ever, roamer of the wild\\nGod, whom you can forget, his own will see\\nHis sun still shines upon his erring child,\\nHis breezes i an you with their current free,\\nAnd his green sod your burial-place shall be.\\nOh, fare you well", "height": "3500", "width": "2212", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0041.jp2"}, "40": {"fulltext": "30 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nrecord gives no ground to believe that any of the members, except\\nthe head, partook of the true spirit of religion, or had any love to\\nGod. His wife, whom some think he had married in Sodom his\\nresidence having been there for more than twenty years was evi-\\ndently strongly attached to the luxuries of her home, and showed\\nreluctance to quit it, even at the command of the messengers of\\nDivine vengeance. The two maiden daughters who escaped the\\ndestruction of Sodom, had not the fear of God before their eyes, as\\ntheir after conduct manifested. His sons-in-law, who had probably\\nmarried others of his daughters not particularly mentioned in\\nScripture paid no heed to his alarmed announcement of impending\\ndestruction, but treated his words with derision. What a situation\\nfor the parent whose sensibilities were alive, to be surrounded by\\nthe thoughtless and hardened, even of his nearest and dearest\\nThe feeling in Lot s nature may have been blunted by much care,\\nand desire of gain but many moments of bitter anguish must\\nhave been his, as he saw the gradual corruption, from the contagion\\nof evil example, of the youthful hearts he would fain have moulded\\nto piety as he saw his precepts disregarded, and contemplated the\\nmoral prospect opening before them. He could not, however,\\nresolve to flee from the contamination of the grievous iniquity around\\nhim, the cry of which had gone up to heaven. His abode was fixed\\nin Sodom, and he could not abandon the substance he had gathered.\\nHe remained till the purpose of God was ripe for accomplish-\\nment, and the day of retribution came.\\nAt the close of even, the patriarch sat in the gate of the city,\\nhaving, perhaps, been occupied in business during the -day, or in\\nconversation with some of the principal inhabitants. He saw two\\nstrangers enter, whose appearance engaged his attention. Not yet\\naware of their supernatural character, and eager to show the hospi-\\ntality deemed so sacred a duty in ancient times, he arose to meet\\nthem, and with a reverential obeisance and with courteous deference\\nof manner saluted them, and entreated as a favor that they would", "height": "3560", "width": "2332", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0042.jp2"}, "41": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF LOT. 31\\naccept the shelter of his roof for the night. They declined, saying\\nthey would abide all night in the street but Lot felt this answer a\\nreproach on his hospitality, and pressed thern so earnestly to partake\\nof entertainment, that they entered his house and sat down to the\\nfeast prepared for them. At a late hour, amidst the clamorous cries\\nand frantic uproar of the wicked multitude without, the strangers\\nbade Lot assemble his family, and gather together whatsoever he\\nwould carry with him in immediate flight. The iniquity of the\\nplace is full its cry is waxen great before the face of the Lord\\nand the new comers are the commissioned messengers of destruction.\\nLot is not disobedient to the heavenly warning. He hastens to call\\nhis sons-in-law, informs them of the impending calamity, and urges\\nthem to lose no time in escaping from the devoted city but he\\nseems to them as one that mocked, and they refuse to credit the\\nappalling words his lips utter. As they were not of the number\\nwho escaped, it is reasonable to conclude that they disregarded alto-\\ngether his entreaties to save themselves, convinced only when it\\nwas too late of the truth of his prediction and that they perished\\nin the wide-spread desolation.\\nThe remaining hours of night passed in vain remonstrances and\\nsolicitations, and in preparations for their hurried flight. As the\\ndawn glimmered in the east, the celestial visitants warned the fugi-\\ntives that no time must be lost. The command to Lot to take his\\nwife and the two daughters that were under his roof, might hnply\\nthat the others, if living, dwelt in homes of their own, and shared\\nthe stubborn incredulity of their husbands. Still as the father\\nlingered, reluctant to leave those who stayed to certain death, his\\ncompanions seized his hand and the hand of those who followed\\nhim, and drawing them with merciful force from the scene of strug-\\ngle, led them forth, stopping not till they were without the gate.\\nEscape for thy life, they cried look not behind thee neither\\nstay thou in all the plain escape to the mountain, lest thou be\\nconsumed.", "height": "3508", "width": "2192", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0043.jp2"}, "42": {"fulltext": "32 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nLot feared to flee to the solitude of the mountain. Accustomed\\nto live in the midst of human companionship, he clung, in lack of\\nfull confidence in God, to the protection of his own kind. A city\\nwas near at hand he might be saved the necessity of a long and\\nperilous flight while unknown evils might await him should he\\nplunge into the dreary recesses of those primitive forests. Even in\\nthe haste and agitation of escape, he turns to the angel to entreat that\\nthe small city in which he desired to seek refuge may be spared.\\nIs it not a little one the inhabitants are few, and the burden of\\ntheir iniquity cannot be so grievous as here it is but a small thing\\nto be saved, when so many are overwhelmed let me escape thither,\\nand shun the dangers of an abode, shelterless and defenceless, upon\\nthe distant mountain His pleading prevails the voice of the\\navenger, which had pronounced the doom of Sodom and Gomorrah,\\nin gracious condescension assures him that his petition is granted,\\nand bids him hasten the departure of his family to the spared city.\\nAs the first beams of the sun kindle the eastern sky, the fugitives\\nare hastening, at their utmost speed not once daring to look back\\nacross the cultivated plain. The destruction ready to descend\\nwith accumulated violence, is held back till they pass beyond its\\nreach. As Lot and his daughters, nearly exhausted with fatigue,\\nenter the gates of Zoar, the storm of Almighty wrath bursts on the\\nplain. Brimstone and fire descend in torrents from the heavens, as\\npoured out from the hand of the Infinite Avenger himself. The\\nsoil, undermined with veins of bitumen and sulphur, is kindled and\\nbroken up by the streaming flames thunders and a terrible quak-\\ning of the earth shake the foundations of the overthrown cities, while\\nthe fiery flood swallows up the habitations of men and amidst the\\nawful convulsion of nature, the fierce uproar of the elements, and the\\nwail of the dying that goes up as the inundation sweeps the valley\\nthe livers overflow their banks, and the waters, rushing together,\\nfill the desolated plain. The rich and blooming vale becomes a\\nsullen lake, whose heavy and unwholesome waters are impregnated", "height": "3552", "width": "2288", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0044.jp2"}, "43": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF LOT. 33\\nwith the bitterness of the soil, and overhung by murky fogs a\\nscene of gloomy desolation a monument to after ages of the tre-\\nmendous catastrophe described in Holy Writ. Malte Brun says\\nof the valley of the Jordan It offers many traces of volcanoes\\nthe bituminous and sulphurous waters of Lake Asphaltites, the lavas\\nand pumice thrown out on its banks, and the warm-bath of Taba-\\nriah, show that this valley has been the theatre of a fire not yet\\nextinguished. Volumes of smoke are often observed to escape from\\nLake Asphaltites, and new crevices are found on its margin.\\nThe wife of Lot lingering behind in unwillingness to leave their\\npossessions in Sodom, or, as some expositors think, attempting to\\nreturn, which opinion is favored by the reference of our Saviour to\\nthe event (St. Luke xvii. 31, 32), was suffocated by the saline and\\nsulphurous vapors that loaded the atmosphere, and in the\\npicturesque language of Scripture, became a pillar of salt. The\\nfather and daughters remained not in Zoar for he feared to dwell\\nthere. Probably the wickedness of the place, and its situation near\\nthe stagnant lake which covered the district once so beautiful and\\npopulous, were sufficient grounds for fear and it is not unlikely\\nthat the remembrances of the terrific catastrophe, kept vivid by the\\nlocality, were to the last degree painful. He sought refuge, with\\nthe remnant of his family, in a cave on the mountains.\\nEarly on that fateful morning arose the pious Abraham, and\\nbetook himself to the elevated place where, the evening previous,\\nhe had stood before the Lord interceding for the doomed cities., So\\ngracious had been the assurance that for the sake even of ten\\nrighteous persons Sodom should be spared, if they were found\\ntherein that some hope lingered in his heart that the city in which\\ndwelt the family of his beloved kinsman might have escaped\\nthe general destruction. With anxiety strongly mingled with fear,\\nbut tempered by a pervading trust that the Judge of all the earth\\nwould do right, he hastened to the spot commanding a view of all\\nthe land of the plain. What a sight met his gaze The level\\n2*", "height": "3488", "width": "2212", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0045.jp2"}, "44": {"fulltext": "34 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nbeams of the sun were stifled in thick clouds of sulphurous vapor\\nthe roar of the fiery storm was still heard, as the smoke of the country,\\nlike the smoke vi a furnace, ascended to blot out the face of the sky.\\nBut amidst the terror of this appalling sight, the soul of the patriarch\\nwas comforted for he knew God had remembered his prayers, and\\nhad saved from death those whom he loved.\\nHow suggestive is this history how full of solemn lessoning\\nWe see the family of a righteous man transplanted from its proper\\nand genial associations of virtue, and growing up in the midst of\\ncorruption we see him vexed in soul from day to day by the\\nenormities j ractised around him, yet lacking resolution to lose all\\nfor conscience sake hoping to shield those dear to him from the\\nwickedness besetting them on every side, and to keep pure the\\natmosphere of his home, or mourning that the contamination has\\ncrossed his guarded threshold. The decree of punishment goes\\nforth and just were it that the innocent, in circumstances like\\nthese, should perish with the guilty. But mercy arrests the uplifted\\nsword. The accumulated vengeance cannot descend the destroying\\narm must delay to strike, till Lot has escaped. The visible interpo-\\nsition of God s messengers snatches him and his family from ruin\\nfor his sake, the fiery destruction passes by the spot whither he flies\\nfor refuge. Does not the scene impressively teach how precious in\\nthe sight of the Lord are the lives of those who obey Him If\\nangels must be sent to save the one family in a nation of sinners,\\nwhose head is a man of prayer feeble though his faith may be\\nhow shall the protecting care and goodness of God cease to abide\\nwith the least of his saints", "height": "3520", "width": "2276", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0046.jp2"}, "45": {"fulltext": "V.\\nISAAC.\\nBY REV. G. W. BETHUNE, D.D.\\nThe life of Isaac, apart from the history of his father and that of\\nhis sons, has few passages of much interest yet the character of\\nIsaac is eminently beautiful and instructive. Without any of that\\nselfish ambition which seeks aggrandizement at the expense of others,\\nor that feverish restlessness which craves continual excitement, or\\nthat zealous irritability which fires at every semblance of affront, or\\nthat revengeful tenacity which contends for the shadow of right, he\\nlived retired from public gaze in the bosom of his family and the\\nfellowship of his God.\\nHe was a man of strong affections. An only son, and much\\ncaressed by his parents, their indulgent tenderness seems only to\\nhave fed the flame of his filial piety. With respectful and confiding\\nobedience, he accompanied his father to the mountain of sacrifice,\\nand was bound for death unresistingly, not shrinking even from\\nthe upraised knife. With sincere and affectionate sorrow he long\\nmourned the loss of his doting mother. With deferent and grateful\\nhumility he received a wife of his father s choice, to a love fond,\\nchangeless, and undecaying. The welfare of his children was the\\nhappiness he chiefly sought and, although he showed a sinful\\npartiality for Esau, his love for Jacob poured itself forth in un-\\nbounded blessings. The trials by which he was disciplined were\\nthose of the affections, for there the divine Chastener saw that the\\nstrength of his character lay. Isaac, the man of God, was a man of\\nlove. A strong example that the religion which God approves,\\ninstead of souring the heart and restraining its charities, denies the\\n35", "height": "3484", "width": "2204", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0047.jp2"}, "46": {"fulltext": "36 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nappellation of believer to those who do not delight in the recipro-\\ncities of familiar and social kindness. Love, the name and character\\nof God, is the imitation of their heavenly Father by his intelligent\\nchildren. Love, in its outgoings and extensions, comprises all oui\\nduty. He, who made us, gave us to each other, and regards well\\npleased the relations he has ordained between us. He has bound\\nthe links of affection around our hearts by his own hand. The tie\\nwhich unites us to Him, unites us to all his human family. When\\nour hearts are full of love to God, they will gush forth love to our\\nfellow-creatures, as surely as waters flow from their higher source to\\nbless the plains beneath. Jesus Christ, the Divine Perfection of\\nhumanity, condensed the ten precepts into Love for God, and Love\\nfor man for God s sake. His incarnation was an incarnation of\\nlove. God so loved the world as to send Him He so loved the\\nworld as to come and, when He had given that proof of love\\nthan which there is none greater, laying down his life for his\\nfriends, He left with his people another Comforter as divine as\\nhimself the Spirit of love. Jesus loved the world; in one strain of\\naffection He rose far above the highest morals of earth-taught\\nphilosophy\u00e2\u0080\u0094 He loved his enemies but He loved with peculiar\\ntenderness the mother of his human nature, and the chosen com-\\npanions of his life. Love was the characteristic that won his\\nwarmest regard. He loved the zeal of Peter, the industry of James,\\nthe guilelessness of Nathaniel, but John rested on his bosom.\\nHe entered many a house to bless its inmates and accept their\\nhospitality, but the homeless One was most at home with Lazarus\\nand his sisters. So, while the primitive Church retained the odor\\nof the Pentecostal unction, its distinguishing marks were love for the\\nworld which persecuted them, and especially love for the household\\nof faith. What sight on earth so rich in moral beauty as a family\\ndwelling together in love, when all have a common weal and a\\ncommon happiness, weeping in each other s grief, rejoicing in each\\nother s joy Could such love be extended throughout a nation,", "height": "3520", "width": "2292", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0048.jp2"}, "47": {"fulltext": "ISAAC. 37\\none brotherhood embracing all its citizens and one interest uniting\\nall hearts, how would the beauty of the scene be magnified But if\\nthe world were thus interlinked, and man looked upon man only as\\na member of the same family, fed, sheltered, instructed, and blessed\\nby one heavenly Father, would earth lack anything of Paradise\\nThere is such a family, there is such a world,\\nFor Love is Heaven and Heaven is Love.\\nTo fit us for that heaven, the Gospel has been sent therefore\\ndoes it hallow the attachment of wedlock, inspire parental devotion\\nand filial piety, rivet the golden chain of friendship, and prompt the\\nfar-reaching aims of philanthropy. He who on earth feels most of\\nsuch sacred love, anticipates most of the heavenly excellence and\\nbliss. Never does the Christian rebel more against the law of his\\nnature, the law of the moral universe, the law of his God and\\nSaviour, than when he permits enmity or even coldness towards\\nothers in his heart never can he write a worse libel upon the\\ncharacter of the faith he professes, than when he refuses to lay\\naside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envyings, and\\nevil-speakings and especially when those hellish mischiefs work\\nin the church of God, or the family. If Charity begin not at home,\\nhow can she go forth into the world 1 Where love rules not, God\\ndoes not dwell.\\nThe character of Isaac at home was his character abroad. He\\nwas a man of peace. He preferred peace above all worldly pos-\\nsessions, and for peace he was willing to give up everything\\nbut principle. He digged one well but when the herdsmen of\\nGerar strove for it, he called it Esek (contention), and left it to\\nthem. He digged another they strove for it also he called it\\nSitnah (hatred), and left it also to them. The God of peace\\nhonored his forbearance, and by the waters of Rehohoth (space) he\\nfound room and quiet.", "height": "3512", "width": "2192", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0049.jp2"}, "48": {"fulltext": "38 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nThis the world would call mean-spiritedness and cowardice but\\nGod approved and rewarded it, for the fruit of peace is sown\\nof them that make peace. Such will ever be the conduct of the\\ntrue Christian. He will rather yield his rights than his serenity,\\nand submit to wrong rather than contend. It is the instinct of the\\nbrute to seek revenge it is God-like to forgive. They took from\\nour beloved Master all, even his life, adding insult and torture to the\\nrobbery, yet He prayed for them with his last breath. Alas how\\nfew Isaacs there are among us now and how much more do we\\nlove to linger near the waters of Esek and Sitnah, than to seek a\\nRehoboth in the providence of God How much might we do for\\nGod and his cause in the time we lose contending with men for our\\nown Surely the Divine glory should be most precious in our\\nestimation and God will take care of ou? s, while we devote our-\\nselves to taking care of His.\\nThere is, indeed, an extent to which we may carry such passive\\nendurance of wrong, which, like all other extremes, becomes censur-\\nable. The allowance of gross, palpable injustice against ourselves,\\nwithout an endeavor to bring the offender under rebuke of the law\\nhe has violated, may be to betray the rights of the community, to\\nendanger social peace, and to foster crime the yielding of our lives\\nwhen assailed by a brutal assassin, without attempting defence, is an\\nunfaithful abandoning of a treasure committed to our keeping by\\nGod himself yet, even in these cases, we should act from conviction\\nof duty, not the fury of anger or vengeance.\\nNeither should the proper defence of truth be ever abandoned on\\nthe plea of peace. The love of true peace, which flows only from\\ntrue religion, will prompt every true believer earnestly to contend\\nfor the faith once delivered to the saints. While there never\\nshould be enmity against the errorist, there never should be truce\\nwith error. To dream of peace, while false doctrines abound,\\nleading men s souls to perdition, is to deceive ourselves, by crying\\nu Peace peace when there is no peace. It may be observed.", "height": "3548", "width": "2308", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0050.jp2"}, "49": {"fulltext": "ISAAC. 39\\nthat none are so anxious for the silence of those who hold established\\ntruth as those most busy in spreading new or revived heresies.\\nBusy themselves in sowing error, they demand that all others shall\\nsleep in silence, on pain of being denounced as disturbers of the\\nChurch. No matter how bold the attack which they make on\\ndoctrines dear to our own and our fathers hearts, we are accused of\\npersecution, or, at least, illiberality, if we resist the inroad. Nothing-\\ncan be more unfair. The one who introduces occasion of offence is\\nguilty of breaking the peace and he, who alarms the honest fears\\nof the Church for the purity of her doctrines, has upon his conscience\\nthe shame of her discord.\\nIf the matter in dispute be so unimportant as not to justify\\ndefence, it does not justify attack, and it is worse than idle to\\nagitate the minds or consciences of others by unnecessary specula-\\ntions. How should the controversialist, who has risked his\\nstanding upon novel doctrines, complain if his standing shares the\\nfate of his innovation If he had succeeded, he would have added\\nto his fame he must not murmur if he experiences the reverse.\\nWe are bound by the highest obligations never to yield the princi-\\nples of our faith. Our zeal in defence should even outwork the\\nerrorist in attack. Yet should no bitterness against those whom\\nGod will judge, sully our zeal for his truth and in most cases an\\nearnest didactic spread of truth is the best polemical method,\\noffensive and defensive, against error. The truth is never well\\nspoken except when spoken in love. We may win our erring-\\nbrother with kindness, but must make him only more obstinate if\\nwe take him by the throat. Religious controversy is necessary\\nwhile error lasts, but is acceptable to God and profitable to man,\\nonly when love for the souls of men is its motive. The moment\\nrancor takes the place of charity, the devil is sure of triumph,\\nwhichever side gains the victory.\\nIsaac was a man of meditation we find him at eventide walking\\nforth to meditate in the field. He chose that tranquil hour and", "height": "3508", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0051.jp2"}, "50": {"fulltext": "40 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nsecluded walk to give his thoughts a solemn, devout direction\\namidst the works of nature he held communion with his God.\\nThe incident enforces a duty and privilege too often neglected by\\nChristians. Pious meditation is enjoined by precept and example\\nthroughout the Scriptures. how I love thy law says the\\nPsalmist it is my meditation all the day long and, speaking\\nof the blessed saint, who is like the ever green and fruitful tree,\\nplanted by the rivers of water, he declares that he meditates\\nupon the law of God both day and night. So our divine Master,\\npressed as he was by cares and merciful duties, found sweet com-\\nfort and strength in retirement for this sacred purpose. On the\\nother hand, the reason assigned for the ignorance of God in those\\nwho have the means of knowledge, is, that they do not consider.\\nThe importance of meditation is readily seen when we remember\\nthat the food of the Christian is truth, which must be digested as well\\nas received. If forethought and retrospect be necessary for the\\nbusiness of this life, how much more must it be for the life to\\ncome What is faith but the application and appropriation of\\ntruth to ourselves What is repentance but a sorrowful review of\\npast sin, and a careful determination of our future course What\\nis hope but an enjoyment by anticipation of the blessed promise\\nIs self-examination necessary We cannot go through the salutary\\nprocess but by meditation. Is it our duty to rule our conduct by\\nthe law of God We cannot do so without meditation neither\\ncan we otherwise feel the constraining influence of Christ s law to\\nholy devotedness.\\nIt is to the neglect of this duty that the Christian may trace\\nmany of his wants and difficulties. He often complains that he\\ncannot keep his thoughts from wandering, and that his heart is cold\\nin prayer yet, perhaps, he has entered his closet, and, after a\\nhurried reading of a little Scripture, knelt before God without pre-\\nparation for the difficult exercise of communing with the heart-\\nsearching and inscrutable One. He has not reminded himself by", "height": "3556", "width": "2316", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0052.jp2"}, "51": {"fulltext": "ISAAC. 41\\nmeditation of the service he wishes to perform. He pronounces the\\nwords of adoration, but he does not feel their power, because he\\nhas not meditated on the character, the perfections, and presence of\\nGod. He uses phrases of confession, but he has not reviewed his\\nconduct that he might remind himself of his sins. He only begins\\nand his mind labors to recall the mercies he has enjoyed, while the\\nterms of thanksgiving are on his lips and he asks for future bless-\\nings, though he has omitted to inquire of his heart what the graces\\nare that he needs. No wonder that his thoughts wander. Five\\nminutes of prayer, made intelligent by five minutes of meditation, is\\nworth an hour of attempted prayer without such a preface. No\\nwonder that he has doubts concerning Scriptural truth, while he\\nreads the Scriptures without meditating on their meaning One\\nverse well digested is worth a chapter superficially glanced over.\\nNo wonder that he is betrayed into sin and hesitates as to his duty,\\nwhen he has not meditated on his probable temptations and the\\nclaims of Providence No wonder that he gains no benefit from the\\nexercises of the sanctuary, when he has neither prepared his mind\\nby previous meditation, nor by subsequent reflection impressed upon\\nhis soul the lessons he heard No wonder that he grows not in\\ngrace, while he gives his thoughts carefully to his temporal concerns,\\nand fences in no hour for holy thoughts alone Sweet is the season\\nand the scene of such pious meditation Angels hover around us\\nthen, and heavenly voices whisper to our hearts, as we bathe our\\nspirits in the clear wells of truth, freshening their wings for an\\nupward flight.\\nIsaac was a man of retirement. Abraham was distinguished by\\nbold enterprise Jacob, by active and persevering industry but\\nIsaac lived remote from bustle and brilliant exhibitions yet was\\nhe dear to the Lord, and the God of Abraham and Jacob was the\\nGod of Isaac also. He pleased his God, and ripened for heaven at\\nhome in the circle of his household. Prominence of station and\\nparade of notoriety are far from necessary to a life of piety and", "height": "3492", "width": "2204", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0053.jp2"}, "52": {"fulltext": "42 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nusefulness. To comply faithfully with the duties of om lot,\\nwhatever that may be, is the requisition which God makes of\\nhis believing servants. It is not for the praise of men that we\\nareto live, though we should so live that they may glorify our\\nMaster; but the eye of God can see us in the humblest walks\\nand the most secluded sphere of duty. On the day of divine retri-\\nbution, when shame and everlasting contempt will be poured upon\\nthe laurelled conqueror and the world-applauded hypocrite, the\\nangels of heaven will delight to honor, as favorites of their king,\\nmany who have lived unknown, it may be despised by men. If\\nGod, by his providence, bid us Come up higher we are not to\\nshrink from the prominence but until then we should not crave the\\nexcitement of a public theatre, nor murmur that our lot is low or\\nour influence apparently small. If we will but faithfully inquire,\\nwe shall find plenty of work laid to our hand, and whatever our\\nhands find to do we are to do with our might. The sphere which\\nGod assigns to us is that where we may best serve him, and there\\nwe are most safe. In our families, in the circle of our neighborhood,\\nwe may fill up all our time with obedient usefulness, and the God\\nof Israel will own us, if we be faithful, in the day of revelation.\\nEspecially should this theme be commended to the hearts of\\nChristian women. There are some, who weakly and wickedly\\nimpugn the wisdom of Providence which has inhibited them the\\nmore prominent and notorious occupations of masculine engage-\\nments. It is not the more remarkable, that are the more important\\nvirtues in the estimation of God. The highest office ever intrusted\\nby God to one of our sinful race, was hers, who, as the spouse of a\\npoor man, in their quiet home amidst the hills of Judea, led with a\\nmother s hand the Jesus of his people up to manhood. The piety\\nof the two faithful women who nursed young Timothy and fed his\\ngrowing soul with the bread of life, has exerted a more extensive\\nand salutary influence upon the world, than all the princes who ever\\nwon the acclamations of the populace. What office so high and", "height": "3516", "width": "2284", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0054.jp2"}, "53": {"fulltext": "ISAAC. 43\\nholy as that which moulds by divine grace, the character of childhood\\nin the image of God What duty so necessary, as the embellish-\\nment of home and household with domestic peace and familiar\\npiety If ever woman deserves the name of Angel, it is when she\\nis the guardian spirit of the earthly Rest that remains for man\\nwearied and harassed by the bustle of the gross external world\\nthen is she, indeed, a messenger sent to earth with blessed presages\\nof heaven. Man, with all his physical strength and rugged faculties,\\nis little worth, without the inspiring grace and constancy of woman s\\npower. Her hand must buckle on his armor for the conflict, her\\nhand cheer his fainting spirit, her hand bind up his wounds, her\\nsmile be the guerdon of his behest; and if his mere sinewy\\nprowess win the victory, more than half the glory belongs to her.\\nNay, there is more genuine heroism, more generous valor in her\\npatient endurance, her faithful watchings by the bed of the helpless,\\nher quiet devotedness to the comfort of others, than in all the feats\\nof arms which heraldic chivalry has ever blazoned. Her resigned\\nsubmission to not unfrequent tyranny from a brutal husband, that,\\nperadventure, she may win back to honor and religion him whom\\nall besides has abandoned, but to whom she clings with a love\\nwhich no unkindness can change, and even crime cannot divorce,\\nhas in it more than the firmness of the martyr who sings amidst the\\nbrief pangs of the fatal flame. He suffers before the crowd an\\naffliction which, compared to hers, is light and but for a moment.\\nShe suffers long under the eye of God alone. She often drinks a\\nfearfully bitter cup, but she will share the joy of Him who drank\\nthe cup of trembling for us. Oh let woman see to it that our\\nhomes be holy, and the world will lose half its sin\\nIsaac was a man of affliction. His retirement was no retreat\\nfrom sorrow. He could not escape the lot of man the wages of\\nsin but grace turned his trials into a discipline more precious than\\nthe refining of gold. His spirit, humbled as it was, was not pure.\\nIt needed the persecutions of men to teach him that earth was not", "height": "3464", "width": "2228", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0055.jp2"}, "54": {"fulltext": "44 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nhis rest, and the troubles of his own household bade him not lean\\neven upon the most beloved of creatures. He learned obedience,\\nlike his holy Lord, by the things that he suffered. The disciple\\nof the Man of Sorrows must expect His baptism of tears.\\nThe path of sorrow, and that path alone,\\nLeads to the land where sorrows are unknown.\\nWe cannot escape sorrow by shrinking from duty. We may be\\ntempted to fly from our external trials by secluding ourselves from\\nthe world which we are bound to serve but God can send into our\\nvery families as He did into that of Isaac, what will be to us a\\ngrief of mind. The best comfort in trial is to know that We have\\nmet it in the way of duty; for then we have the assurance of our\\nheavenly Father s faithfulness, the sympathy of our once suffering\\nLord, and the promise of that heaven where pious sorrow will be\\noverpaid by everlasting joy. God s love is first to fill our hearts,\\nand then every other affection will be blessed in the holy atmosphere\\nbut upon nothing less than the Infinite should our hearts be set, for\\nthere is nothing steadfast but God, nothing certain but His will,\\nand nothing satisfying but his favor.", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0056.jp2"}, "55": {"fulltext": "vi.\\nJACOB.\\nBY REV. HENRY FIELD.\\nThe life of Jacob abounds in incident it is full of lights and\\nshadows. His domestic history is not altogether happy. A succes-\\nsion of family quarrels and feuds embittered a great part of his life.\\nHated by his brother forced when a young man to fly for his life\\nan exile from home for twenty years and then falling out with\\nhis father-in-law and, subsequently, the contentions of his children,\\nthe loss of his wife, and the violent death, as he supposed, of his\\nfavorite child were the dark passages of his life. His dream his\\nearly love his reconciliation with Esau his recovery of Joseph\\nare the brighter portions of his history. The impression becomes\\nmore pleasing as the narrative advances. His character is seen to\\nbe purified by suffering, and to be exalted by the habitual exercise\\nof religious faith and at last his sun goes down in peace.\\nThe unhappiness of Jacob s life was owing partly to his own\\nselfish and ungenerous disposition, and partly to that favoritism of a\\nweak and partial mother, which has spoiled so many sons.\\nEsau and Jacob were twins. They were the only children of their\\nparents. Nature had united them more closely than most brothers,\\nyet their dispositions were opposite, and their course of life totally\\ndifferent. Esau was a man of great activity and daring, a bold\\nhunter. Jacob was more timid, and fond of nestling by his mother s\\nside. The fearlessness of Esau naturally attracted the admiration\\nand fondness of his father, while Jacob was the mother s boy. This\\ndifference of disposition is indicated in a few words Esau was a\\ncunning hunter, a man of the field and Jacob was a plain man,\\n45", "height": "3504", "width": "2196", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0057.jp2"}, "56": {"fulltext": "46 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\ndwelling in tents. And Isaac loved Esau, because he did eat of his\\nvenison but Rebekah loved Jacob.\\nFavoritism on the part of parents towards one child produces\\nalmost inevitably jealousy and discord in the family. Esau, perhaps,\\ndespised his brother as a timid man, staying at home and attending\\nto affairs of the kitchen while Jacob was envious of Esau that he\\nhad the birthright. This envy and discontent of Jacob were\\nfostered by the injudicious fondness of his mother. Rebekah loved\\nher son, but she took the direct course to spoil him to ruin his\\ndisposition and his happiness. She was not a woman of strict inte-\\ngrity. Her principle easily yielded to her affection, and she encou-\\nraged her child in meanness and deception.\\nThe sons grew up together to the age of twenty-five years, when\\nthe eager and ungenerous spirit of Jacob led him on one occasion to\\ntake advantage of his brother, when he was fainting with hunger, to\\nget possession of the birthright. This act probably did not increase\\nthe affection of the brothers. But it was followed by one still\\nworse an act of direct deception and falsehood by which Jacob got\\naway his father s blessing. We are not of the number of those who\\nthink that reverence for the Scriptures requires them to apologize\\nfor or extenuate every bad action of a good man. Fidelity to truth\\nrequires us to see things as they are, and to speak of them as they\\ndeserve. We are to paint vice so as to excite indignation against it.\\nThis conduct of Jacob was most base and unnatural. History\\nhardly presents a crime more utterly without apology or excuse\\nthan that of this young man, standing at the bedside of his blind\\nold father, with his hands and the smooth of his neck covered with\\ngoat skins to aid his deception, and telling a deliberate lie, and that\\ntoo for the purpose of defrauding his own brother\\nThis conduct was bitterly punished. It produced an instant rup-\\nture with his brother, and brought upon him a series of misfortunes\\nwhich lasted the greater part of his life. Such selfishness needed\\nthe salutary discipline of suffering. A long exile from home must", "height": "3520", "width": "2220", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0058.jp2"}, "57": {"fulltext": "JACOB. 47\\nhave made liim often reflect with bitterness on his duplicity and\\nfraud. In his sad and solitary hours, and, later in life, in his distress\\nat the conduct of his children, he must often have reproached him-\\nself for his conduct to his father and brother.\\nThis early history of Jacob, though the least pleasing part of his\\nlife, is perhaps the most instructive. It shows how jealousy and\\nambition may invade even the simple life of patriarchs and shep-\\nherds. The same passions destroyed their peace, which ruin the\\nhappiness of families at this day. Their domestic history is to us\\nalmost as much a warning as an example.\\nEsau and Jacob were alienated from each other by the un-\\nwise treatment of their parents. Their enmity and separation, which\\nlasted twenty years, was the consequence of favoritism in the family.\\nThe trickery and lying of Jacob, encouraged by a mother whose\\naffection outran her principle, stirred up a deadly feud between\\nthese brothers, so tenderly united by nature, which was not healed\\ntill years after, when that mother was in her grave.\\nHappily adversity was more useful to Jacob than maternal fond-\\nness and the sufferings which he had now to experience, will present\\nus a nobler character, and more happy scenes in after years.\\nAfter his cruel fraud upon Esau, Jacob was no longer safe in his\\nfather s house. He saw in the countenance of his brother a deadly\\nhatred, which the presence of their parents alone restrained. His\\nmother became alarmed for the consequences of her own folly, and\\nsent him off secretly to his uncle in Mesopotamia.\\nBehold then a young pilgrim, with his staff in hand, stealing\\naway from the tent of Isaac, and becoming a wanderer on the wide\\nworld His course lay towards Padan-aram, a distance of four hun-\\ndred and fifty miles, across a wild, uninhabited country. Alone he\\ncrosses the desert, thinking bitterly as he goes of his selfishness and\\ndeceit, so justly punished. What had he gained by his dishonesty\\nPerhaps some advantage of property, if he should live to enjoy it", "height": "3504", "width": "2180", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0059.jp2"}, "58": {"fulltext": "48 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nBut he had banished himself from all whom he loved on earth, and\\nbecome a wanderer and an exile.\\nGradually, perhaps, the new scenes which met his eye as he\\napproached Mesopotamia, beguiled his thoughts and raised his\\ndejected spirits. At night the brilliancy of the heavens, as they\\nshone down upon the desert, made him forget his troubles. It was\\nafter sunset one day when he arrived at a place suitable for him to\\nspend the night. He had no shelter. A stone served for his pillow.\\nBut extreme weariness made him forget his hard bed, and he fell\\ninto a tranquil slumber when lo a dream opened to him a glimpse\\nof his future career. And he dreamed and behold a ladder set up\\non the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven and behold the\\nangels of God ascending and descending upon it. And behold the\\nLord stood above it, and said I am the Lord God of Abraham\\nthy father, and the God of Isaac the land whereon thou liest to\\nthee will I give it, and to thy seed. And thy seed shall be as the\\ndust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west and to\\nthe east, and to the north and to the south and in thee and in thy\\nseed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. And, behold, I\\nam with thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee\\nagain into this land for I will not leave thee, until I have done\\nthat which I have spoken to thee of.\\nIf we might allegorize this dream, we might regard it as a symbol\\nof religion the opening to the mind of a spiritual world. A door\\nis opened in heaven. Faith commands the visible and invisible\\nworlds. It takes away that sense of loneliness which man has\\nin the present world. It opens in him a new sense to discern that\\nMillions of spiritual beings walk the earth\\nUnseen, both when we wake and when we sleep.\\nThese blessed spirits now fill the air. They brush past us in the", "height": "3520", "width": "2284", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0060.jp2"}, "59": {"fulltext": "JACOB. 49\\ntwilight, and in the stillness of meditation their voices are almost\\naudible.\\nLife is a different thing to a man, after he has learned the\\nuniversal presence of God. The trees and flowers are different,\\nsince they now appear as the buddings forth, not of unconscious\\nnature, but as the unfolding beauty of an Infinite Spirit, who per-\\nvades nature and gives it life. The brooks and hills, the valleys and\\nmountains and stars, wear a new beauty to him who sees God in\\nthem all. To him the Universe is a temple and life one con-\\ntinued act of adoration.\\nWhen Jacob awoke, he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is\\nthis place This is none other but the House of God, and this is\\nthe gate of heaven He erected a monument on the desert, which\\nbecame thenceforth a landmark in his history. This celestial\\napparition and voice appear to have made a deep impression on his\\nmind, and to have been the date of the commencement of that\\nearnest, religious life, for which he was afterwards so much distin-\\nguished. In all his wanderings after, he was supported by faith in\\na Power above him. He endured as seeing Him who is invisible.\\nThe unhappiness of Jacob is now relieved by the most pleasing\\ncircumstance of his early life, his attachment to his beautiful cousin\\nRachel. Their first interview shows the simplicity and innocence of\\nthe manners of that age.\\nA rural scene presents itself, men and women tending their\\nflocks in the open air. The occupation of a shepherd was highly\\nhonorable, being often united with that of a patriarch or a prince.\\nA youthful stranger approaches to ask if they know Laban, the son\\nof Nahor. They reply, that they know him that he is well and\\nthat Rachel, his daughter, is at that moment coming with the sheep.\\nAnd while he yet spake with them, Rachel came with her father s\\nsheep for she kept them. And it came to pass, when Jacob saw\\nRachel the daughter of Laban his mother s brother, and the sheep of\\nLaban his mother s brother, that Jacob went near, and rolled the", "height": "3504", "width": "2196", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0061.jp2"}, "60": {"fulltext": "50 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nstone from the well s mouth, and watered the flocks of Laban his\\nmother s brother. And Jacob kissed Rachel and lifted up his voice,\\nand wept. And Jacob told Rachel that he was her father s brother,\\nand that he was Rebekah s son and she ran and told her father.\\nLaban received Jacob with the same cordiality as his daughter. He\\nran to meet him, and embraced him, and kissed him, and brought\\nhim to his house.\\nHere Jacob stayed, enjoying the hospitality of his uncle, for a\\nmonth. At the end of that time Laban proposed to give him\\nemployment at regular wages. Jacob replied by proposing to serve\\nseven years for Rachel, Laban s younger daughter. If he had come\\nto sue for her hand with a train of servants, and camels laden with\\npresents, as Abraham s servant came to seek for a wife for Isaac, his\\ncourtship might not have been long. But Jacob was alone, without\\nservants or presents, and had to make his way in the affections of\\nboth father and daughter by his own merit and industry.\\nThe long term of service was rendered light by his attachment to\\nher who was to be his reward. The whole story of love is told in\\none verse Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they seemed\\nunto him but a few days for the love he had to her. What inno-\\ncent joy he received as he tended the flocks of Laban in company\\nwith his beautiful shepherdess, as they drove them to some quiet\\nvalley to graze, or led them to the well to drink, or collected them\\nin the fold at night.\\nAfter serving seven years, Jacob was cruelly disappointed on his\\nwedding night hi having the elder sister Leah substituted in place\\nof his appointed bride. Rachel was finally given to him as his wife,\\nbut he was compelled to serve for her seven years more. The\\ncunning and duplicity which he had practised years before on his\\nbrother Esau, God now punished by making him suffer from the\\nmiserly temper of Laban, a man more cunning and unscrupulous\\nthan- himself. Laban was Rebekah s brother. The family was not\\nremarkable for principle or conscientiousness. Rebekah aided in", "height": "3544", "width": "2216", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0062.jp2"}, "61": {"fulltext": "JACOB. 51\\ndeceiving Isaac, to advance the interests of her favorite child and\\nthat same child was afterwards defrauded by Laban, her own\\nbrother. Such is the retribution which overtakes deceit and false-\\nhood even in this world.\\nAt length Jacob found that his situation was not altogether\\nhappy. The avarice of his father-in-law brought their interests into\\nfrequent collision and to get away from strife, Jacob resolved to\\nreturn into his own land. He collected his cattle. His sons and\\nhis wives were mounted on swift camels and then the whole\\ncaravan fled across the desert. Twenty years had elapsed since he\\ncrossed that region before. Then he was a young man alone and\\npoor. Now he was returning with a large family, and flocks and\\nherds. So privately had he stolen away, that it was not until the\\nthird day after he was gone, that Laban knew of his flight. He\\ninstantly collected a company among his kinsmen, and set off in\\npursuit. The march of the fugitives was so rapid that it was not\\ntill after a week s hot chase that Laban and his party overtook\\nthem. At the close of the seventh day they descried in the distance\\nthe white tents of Jacob s encampment on Mount Gilead.\\nLaban was enraged at the departure of Jacob, from the loss to\\nhis own interests. But he cloaks his selfish chagrin under a pre-\\ntence of affection for his children, and rudely accosts his son-in-law\\nWherefore didst thou flee away secretly and didst not tell me,\\nthat I might have sent thee away with mirth, and with songs, and\\nwith tabret, and with harps and hast not suffered me to kiss my\\nsons and my daughters thou hast now done foolishly in so doing.\\nJacob replies by a simple story of the injuries he had received\\nfrom his avaricious father-in-law. Laban was a selfish and hard-\\nhearted man but he was not without the feelings of a father. His\\nheart relented at the tale of his own injustice, and he became\\nreconciled on the spot. The father and son made a covenant toge-\\nther. Even Laban gave utterance to a beautiful sentiment at\\nparting The Lord watch between thee and me, when we are\\nabsent one from another.", "height": "3492", "width": "2196", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0063.jp2"}, "62": {"fulltext": "52 FAMILY PICTURES FEOM THE BIBLE.\\nBut no sooner is Jacob out of one danger than he is exposed to\\nanother. He is hardly escaped from his father-in-law before he\\nbecomes alarmed at the prospect of meeting his brother. He heard\\nthat Esau is advancing to meet him with four hundred men. In\\nthis case his conscience reproaches him for having done wrong, and\\nincreases his apprehension.\\nThe happiness of his wives and children depended upon his own\\nsafety, and required him to use every precaution. Jacob acted in\\nthis danger as a prudent and a pious man. He employed every\\nmeans to avert the impending blow. He sent forward parties with\\npresents to conciliate his offended brother. He divided his company\\ninto two bands, so that if one was cut off, the other might escape.\\nAfter making these dispositions, he sought relief and support in\\nprayer. At night he retired apart. The clear heavens were above\\nhim, calm as on that night when God appeared to him in a dream.\\nThe morning came, and Jacob s mind was at rest. The first\\nsight of the brothers dissipated his fears. Powerful nature overcame\\ntheir little jealousies. Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him,\\nand fell on his neck, and kissed him, and they wept.\\nJacob s life now reaches a period of comparative repose. He was\\nao-ain settled in his native land. He saw once more his old father\\nIsaac. The care of his large family and of his numerous flocks\\nafforded him sufficient occupation. He had attained ample wealth,\\nand moved among his descendants with the dignity of a patriarch.\\nIt is pleasant to contemplate him at this period of his life. His\\nsilver locks fell over a grave and venerable countenance, which bore\\nan expression of tranquillity and religious hope. His years glided\\naway in peace. He would have been completely happy but for the\\njealousy which now began to spring up among his children. It is\\neasy to understand why he loved Joseph more than his other sons.\\nNot only was he the child of Rachel, but there was a gentleness\\nabout him, unlike the rough dispositions of his brothers, and a\\nmagnanimity in striking contrast with their selfish and jealous", "height": "3548", "width": "2268", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0064.jp2"}, "63": {"fulltext": "JACOB. 53\\ntempers. But this superior goodness, instead of attracting the love,\\nexcited the hatred of his brothers. It is the spirit of low natures to\\nhate any character which is above their own.\\nForty years had passed since his return to his native land, and\\nJacob had become an old man, even in that age of patriarchs, when\\nthe mysterious disappearance of Joseph came to add a last pang to\\nthe sorrows of his life. A bleak, desolate existence followed durino-\\nthe years that he supposed him dead. It was not till a famine\\ndrove his sons into Egypt to buy corn, that he discovered the fact\\nthat his long lost son was still alive, and at the head of a powerful\\nempire. The news that Joseph was alive was to Jacob like a\\nresurrection from the dead. At first he could not believe it, and his\\nheart fainted. But when he saw the wagons which Joseph had\\nsent to carry him, his spirit revived, and he said, It is enough,\\nJoseph my son is yet alive, I will go and see him before I die.\\nThe meeting of Jacob and Joseph is a beautiful subject for an\\nartist. History presents nothing more touching. Joseph made\\nready his chariot, and went up to meet Israel, his father, to Goshen,\\nand presented himself to him, and he fell on his neck, and wept on\\nhis neck a good while. And Israel said unto Joseph, Now let me\\ndie, since I have seen thy face, because thou art yet alive.\\nThe last years of Jacob s life were the happiest. He lived in\\nEgypt in honor seventeen years. He was introduced into the\\npresence of Pharaoh, before whom he appeared as representative of\\nanother generation. Touched with his venerable aspect, the\\nmonarch asked him his age. The days of the years of my\\npilgrimage, answered Jacob, are an hundred and thirty years.\\nFew and evil have the days of the years of my life been, and have\\nnot attained unto the days of the years of the life of my fathers in\\nthe days of their pilgrimage.\\nTo render the old man s happiness complete, he saw all his\\nfamily collected together again, and Ins children reconciled to each\\nother. This affection continued after his death. Joseph s brethren", "height": "3496", "width": "2188", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0065.jp2"}, "64": {"fulltext": "54 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nfeared that, when their father was gone, they should experience\\nharsh treatment from him to whom they had showed no kindness.\\nBut their generous brother wept when the fear was mentioned to\\nhim. He forgave them all, and stilled their self-reproach by saying,\\nYe thought evil against me, but God meant it unto good.\\nThe closing scene of the patriarch s life was affecting. Jacob\\nknew that he must die, and the strong affection for his country\\nwhich often visits old men, made him request, as a last favor, to be\\nburied in his native land. He wished that his ashes might repose\\nwith those of his fathers, that they might be united in death He\\ncalled his son Joseph to his bedside, and said to him, Bury me not,\\nI pray thee, in Egypt. But I will lie with my fathers, and thou\\nshalt carry me out of Egypt, and bury me in their burying-place.\\nJoseph promised to execute faithfully the dying request of his father,\\nto transport his body to the cave of Machpelah, to repose by the side\\nof the bodies of Abraham and Isaac.\\nThere stood around that death-bed all the sons of Jacob, the\\nfathers of twelve mighty nations, and he foretold their history.\\nMemorable predictions which have been verified in the fate of that\\nstrange people, whose character and position among the nations are\\na wonder to this day.", "height": "3552", "width": "2280", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0066.jp2"}, "65": {"fulltext": "VII.\\nTHE FAMILY OF MOSES.\\nThe lustre of the public life of Moses lias thrown into the shade\\nthe more private and domestic portions of his history. Besides, this\\nhas little connexion with the great design of the Sacred Record, and\\nis therefore briefly passed over. But the qualities exhibited in the\\nadministration of the great lawgiver also illustrate the character of\\nthe exemplary founder of a family. His disregard of self, and abso-\\nlute devotion to the will of God the kindly and generous affections\\nwhich appear in many of his actions, his influence over others, and\\ncapacity to rule and guide them his firmness and judgment,\\nblended with a meekness that precluded motives of interest or ambi-\\ntion all qualified him to fill with honor and usefulness a sphere\\nmore limited, as well as he filled the elevated place of lawgiver to\\nthe chosen people. It may not be profitless, therefore, to dwell on\\nthe outline given of liis personal history.\\nThe accession of a new monarch in Egypt, by whom the eminent\\nservices of Joseph were forgotten, brought into rigorous bondage the\\nrace of strangers, who, -at first guests in the land, had increased and\\nmultiplied so as to become formidable to its governors. The policy\\nadopted to diminish their numbers and crush their spirit that of\\nforcing them to labor in building cities, and in all manner of hard\\nservice, oppressing them with taskmasters, who exacted toil beyond\\ntheir strength having failed in its object, the bloody edict was\\nissued for the destruction of all their male children, and the\\nexecution of the decree was committed to the king s servants.\\nAmidst the terrors of this law, which none dared resist, the wife of\\nAmram, a descendant of Levi, bore a son, whose existence she con-\\n55", "height": "3500", "width": "2204", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0067.jp2"}, "66": {"fulltext": "56 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\ncealed three months from the executioner of the barbarous edict.\\nWhen she could hide him no longer, she committed her cherished\\nchild to the mercy of God, in faith, as we are informed, leaving the\\nevent in the hands of a wisdom greater than her own. In his ark\\nof bulrushes, laid among the flags on the river s brink, the child was\\nfound and adopted by a prince *s, who, at the suggestion of his sister\\nMiriam, employed the mother to nurse the infant. Some of the\\nancient classic fables in which the idea of immutable destiny is pro-\\nminent a destiny against which the short-sighted will of mortals\\nstruggles in vain, bringing about the accomplishment by efforts to\\navert what is impending might have been suggested by this sim-\\nple but picturesque history. Rabbinical tradition represents the\\nEgyptian king mysteriously warned of one among the Hebrews,\\nwho was to bring his power to the dust, and achieve deliverance and\\ngreatness for his own people. Although nothing in the Scripture\\nnarrative sanctions such a belief, the vague dread cherished by the\\ntyrant of the growing strength of the nation held in slavery and\\nrendered hostile by oppression is particularly mentioned. In the\\nhope and expectation of soon cutting short the race, he takes into\\nhis household the very person appointed for the work of deliverance,\\nand causes him to be trained in all the wisdom of the Egyptians.\\nIt appears that some consciousness of his own high destiny was in\\nthe mind of Moses from his youth. His rank, favor at court, and\\nthe brilliant prospects open to ambition, were deliberately renounced\\nby him when he had reached the age of manhood. He observed\\nthe sunken and servile condition of the seed of Abraham his heart\\nwent forth to those poor toiling slaves, and he determined to cast\\nhis lot among them. He chose to suffer affliction with the people\\nof God rather than live the favorite of a monarch, the heir of\\nhonors and wealth and power, among the proud and idolatrous.\\nHis generous choice made, and, probably, the impulse of his divine\\nmission upon him, one day while witnessing the sufferings of his\\nbrethren, he was moved by indignation to slay an Egyptian for some", "height": "3520", "width": "2232", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0068.jp2"}, "67": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF MOSES. 57\\ncruelty exercised upon one of the slaves. The Hebrews showing\\nlittle gratitude for his interference and courage in avenging their\\nwrongs and his secret reaching the ears of Pharaoh, from whom\\nhe could expect no indulgence after so daring a crime the new-born\\nhopes of Moses for his people were extinguished. They had grown,\\nhe reasoned, servile in spirit as well as in condition, and would\\nrather sacrifice than support one who should rise up in their\\ndefence.\\nAfter the failure of his enterprise, Moses fled from Egypt, an exile\\nfrom the country of his birth, and wandered alone among the roving\\ntribes in the land of Midian. He had left all his hopes behind, and\\nnad now no aim nor purpose save to escape from persecution and\\ndanger. He sits by a well where the herdsmen come to draw water\\nfor their flocks, wearied with the journey of the day, under the\\nparching sun of that climate. The daughters of the priest or prince\\nof Midian come to draw water a circumstance which presents a\\ncurious picture of primitive customs. It is likely that the scarcity\\nof water in those sandy regions was at times very great for the\\nwomen, while drawing for their father s flock, are driven away by\\nthe shepherds, probably the followers of some neighboring chief, who\\ncome with the same purpose to the well. The lonely stranger takes\\ntheir part, helps them against the intruders, and gives water to their\\nflock. They inform their father of the good turn done them by the\\nEgyptian, and Moses accepts the hospitable invitation to take up his\\nabode with Reuel, and serve him in the humble capacity of a shep-\\nherd. He is joined to him more closely by marriage with his\\ndaughter Zipporah and in process of time sees his children around\\nhim. Moses appears to have been happy in this new mode of life\\nhe was content, notwithstanding the ease and splendor of his\\nearly years for his mind was no longer distracted by the scenes\\npassing daily before his eyes. Of the character of Zipporah we\\nknow little but from what is related of her, we may infer that she\\nwas in mind and heart not unworthy the choice of the future law-\\n3*", "height": "3500", "width": "2204", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0069.jp2"}, "68": {"fulltext": "58 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\ngiver. Her prompt action to avert the displeasure of the Lord,\\nwhen it was awakened against Moses for his neglect of a solemn\\nordinance, indicates both understanding and feeling and when it is\\nintimated, in the narrative of the twelfth chapter of Numbers, that\\nshe had become an object of jealous dislike to Miriam and Aaron,\\nby whom her Ethiopian or Arabian origin is charged against her\\nwe cannot but suppose her occupying a position of dignity and\\ninfluence. There is no intimation given that Moses ever married\\nany other woman.\\nIn his children he was more fortunate than his brother Aaron,\\nwhose sons perished for their desecration of sacred things in the per-\\nformance of religious rites. The eldest son of Moses was called\\nGershom, for he said, I have been a stranger in a strange land\\nthe younger Eliezer, in remembrance of his providential deliverance\\nfrom the sword of Pharaoh. Thus he remembered his exile, and\\nthe power which had saved him from death in Egypt but during\\nthe forty years that passed while he kept the flock of his father-in-\\nlaw, his ambition seemed bounded by the deserts and mountains\\namong which he led his herds for pasturage. The zeal of the\\npatriot, which had once burned in his bosom, no longer impelled\\nhim to rash acts of bravery. The oppressions of his countrymen,\\nstill sending up to heaven a cry by reason of their cruel bondage,\\nseem to have gone from the recollection of Moses, while he was as\\nentirely forgotten by them. The strength and enthusiasm of his\\nyouth had passed away in the natural course of human life and\\nthe approach of old age, for even allowing the then proportion of\\nlife s duration he was an old man found him still in the obscurity\\nof a simple shepherd. The period of his stay in Midian may be said\\nto comprise the whole of his life as the head of a family for amid\\nthe cares of his public position, his whole time and attention were\\noccupied with his duties to the nation over which he was placed.\\nThese forty years embrace what is usually the most active and\\nuseful portion of existence. Moses was not summoned to his great", "height": "3552", "width": "2224", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0070.jp2"}, "69": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF MOSES. 59\\nvMk till after they had expired perhaps that he might learn\\ndependence, not on his own sufficiency, but the help of Omnipo-\\ntence. It is evident that he had abandoned the patriotic hope he\\nonce cherished, from his answer to the Deity on the first announce-\\nment of his gracious intention Who am I, that I should go unto\\nPharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of\\nEgypt and from his sinful reluctance to undertake the mission\\n(Exodus iv. 13), even when assured of support.\\nThe years of his shepherd life were undoubtedly the happiest,\\nalthough alienated from his people, and forgetful of the covenant\\nsealed with Abraham. He was content to dwell in this seclusion\\nand servitude, ignorant alike of the toils and rewards of a higher\\nservice. The peace o\u00c2\u00a3 those desert borders of Arabia was not likely\\nto be invaded by foreign foes the lowly herdsman has no more to\\ndo with the strife of individuals or nations his family is growing up\\nin his home, and his spirit of adventure has long since given place\\nto a love of quiet and domestic security. Leading the flock of his\\nfather-in-law for pasturage across- the desert to a mountainous\\ndistrict between two forks of the Red Sea, he arrives at the mountain\\nafterwards consecrated by the name of the Mountain of God. In\\nthese solitudes the presence of Deity is manifested to him, and he\\nreceives the commission to go forth as the appointed deliverer and\\nleader of Israel. He returns to Jethro, his father-in-law, and\\nrequests permission to visit his brethren in Egypt. It does not\\nappear that Jethro has any intimation of his divine mission yet he\\nexpresses no surprise at the sudden resolution, adopted after almost a\\nlifetime of contented exile his assent and blessing are given, and\\nassured of safety from his former enemies, Moses departs for Egypt,\\naccompanied by his wife and sons, and bearing the rod of God, the\\ninstrument of so many miracles, in his hand. The conduct of\\nZipporah at the inn upon the way, where she hastily fulfils the rite\\nfor the neglect of which Moses stands under the heavy displeasure", "height": "3488", "width": "2204", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0071.jp2"}, "70": {"fulltext": "60 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nof the Lord, has been noticed. She was sent back, with her sofl^to\\nMidian, probably after the meeting with Aaron in the wilderness.\\nThe wonders wrought by Moses, and the mighty events in which\\nhe became so conspicuous, belong not to the subject under con-\\nsideration. When the fame of all that the Lord had done for him\\nand for Israel his people, reached the ears of Jethro in his secluded\\ndwelling -place, he set out, with Zipporah and her sons, and journeyed\\ninto the wilderness, to the Israelitish camp by the Mount of God.\\nThe renowned leader, at the announcement of the approach of his\\nfather-in-law and family, went forth to receive them with due respect,\\nand conducted them to his tent. How solemn, yet how joyful, must\\nhave been that meeting The change in the fortunes of him who\\nfrom a simple herdsman had risen to be the head of a numerous\\npeople, their leader in battle, and interpreter of the will of their\\nDivine Soveieign, had not changed the affectionate nature which\\nstill sought its enjoyment in the domestic circle. They sat together\\nin the tent those loved ones united after a long and eventful\\nseparation to ask each other of their welfare with an interest that\\nlingered on the smallest details, and to recount to one another all\\nthat had taken place since their parting. This domestic picture,\\none of the most touching and beautiful in the Bible, is the more\\nimpressive from the contrasts with which it is presented. It is a\\nscene of repose and happiness in the midst of a life of action and\\nanxiety. The great general and lawgiver, burdened with multiform\\nduties involving a nation s destiny, here rests for a space to taste a\\njoy the meanest of those who followed him may call his own. The\\nstrange vicissitudes through which he and his people have passed,\\nwith the glory that has been revealed, on the one hand the\\nmysterious future, dark to mortal eyes, but lighted by the reflection\\nof the guiding pillar of fire the far-shining lamp of faith\u00e2\u0080\u0094 on the\\nother and in the midst the peace which is the fruit of a conscience\\nvoid of offence towards God and man, confidence in intrusting all", "height": "3520", "width": "2268", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0072.jp2"}, "71": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF MOSES. 61\\nthat concerns him individually to the keeping of his Heavenly\\nProtector gratitude for the mercy that has directed the steps of\\nthose dear to him, and brought them together once more to join\\ntheir praises The aged father-in-law hears the wondrous story\\nfrom the lips of Moses, and breaks forth into an ascription of blessing\\nto Him who has ransomed Israel. His faith is strengthened jNow\\nI know, he exclaims, that the Lord is greater than all gods f. and\\nin the plenitude of his joy and thankfulness, he presents a burnt\\noffering and sacrifices. Aaron and the elders of Israel partake of\\nthe holy feast, and celebrate this happy reunion of the family\\ncircle.\\nWith the morrow return the duties of the leader and sole judge\\nof Israel. An intimation is given of their laborious character,\\nwhen it is said, The people fetood by Moses from the morning unto\\nthe evening. The prudence and sagacity of Jethro appear evident\\nin the counsel he gives for the appointment of subordinate officers\\nfor a regular administration in common civil and religious affairs.\\nMoses renders respect to his father-in-law by attention to the advice\\nso wisely and kindly given. The conduct of both is marked by\\ndignified affection in their several relations and we admire the\\nsympathy of Jethro, and his readiness to enter with interest into the\\naffairs of his son-in-law, to support and aid him by his counsel and\\nprayers, as well as the respect paid by Moses to all that he said.\\nThe visit being ended, the old man returns to his own country,\\nleaving the wife and children of Moses at the encampment.\\nNothing more is said of Zipporah, who probably continued with\\nthe camp, till she is mentioned as being complained of by Miriam\\nand Aaron, in their seditious language against the lawgiver, so\\nsignally rebuked by Divine interposition. We know not of the\\nshare she bore in what her husband did, or in the wanderings of\\nafter years. When the people- lapsed into idolatry in despair of the\\nreturn of Moses from the Mount, or amidst the many terrible scenes\\nshe must have witnessed, it is pleasing to imagine her steadfast in", "height": "3492", "width": "2204", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0073.jp2"}, "72": {"fulltext": "62 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\ncourage and faith. Probably her death took place long before that\\nof Moses, as no mention is made of her, and the great prophet met\\nhis fate alone upon the mount whence he had the sight of the\\npromised land.\\nOf the family of Joshua no more is known than may be under-\\nstood from his noble declaration so expressive, so encouraging, and\\nso full of significance for all heads of families As for me and my\\nhouse, we will serve the Lord.", "height": "3544", "width": "2268", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0074.jp2"}, "73": {"fulltext": "VIII.\\nJOB AND HIS FAMILY.\\nBY REV. M. S. HUTTON, D.D.\\nThe book of Job affords one of the most interesting pages of\\nman s history, not only because he himself is one of the most\\ninteresting of men, but because the book is of such remote antiquity.\\nIt is the single and solitary record of its distant times the most\\nancient record in the world. Its author was the first inspired writer\\nof the sacred volume. He lived before the sacred historian\\nMoses was born, and wrote long before the Law was given on\\nMount Sinai. Indeed there is reason to suppose that the Book was\\nwritten prior to the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, and, there-\\nfore, before the Church of God was formed in the family of Abra-\\nham, and only about six hundred years after the deluge.\\nIn this light alone it is a most interesting book relating to a\\nman who lived at a period almost beyond church history, before the\\nage of man was shortened to its present brief span relating to one\\nwho was a stranger to the commonwealth of Israel, out of the\\nordinary church line, yet surpassed by none in religious devotion\\nas a fragment a most beautiful fragment of patriarchal times, and\\nof a patriarchal church, it is unrivalled in interest.\\nBut it possesses also internal properties which make it invaluable.\\nSays a late commentator, in speaking upon this subject, As a\\nmere specimen of composition, apart from all the questions of its\\ntheological bearings, as the oldest book in the world, as reflecting\\nthe manners, habits, and opinions of an ancient generation, as illus-\\ntrating, more than any other book extant, the state of the sciences,\\n63", "height": "3480", "width": "2212", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0075.jp2"}, "74": {"fulltext": "64\\nFAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nthe ancient views of astronomy, geology, geography, natural history,\\nand the advances made in the arts, this book has a higher Value\\nthan can be attached tc any other record of the past, and demands\\nthe profound attention of those who would make themselves familiar\\nwith the history of the race. The theologian should study it, as an\\ninvaluable introduction to the volume of inspired truth the humble\\nChristian, to obtain elevated views of God the philosopher, to see\\nhow little the human mind can accomplish, on the most important\\nof all subjects, without the aid of Revelation the child of sorrow, to\\nlearn the lessons of patient submission the man of science, to know\\nwhat was understood in the far distant periods of the past the man\\nof taste, as an incomparable specimen of poetic beauty and sublimity.\\nIt will teach invaluable lessons to each advancing generation and\\nto the end of time true piety and taste will find consolation and\\npleasure in the study of the book of Job.\\nTo this he might have added, as not the least of its valuable con-\\ntributions, the picture which it affords of family religion and family\\nunion, under circumstances so different from our own a picture,\\nthe light and shade of which exhibit, with great certainty, the error\\nof that theory which advocates the onward progress of society from\\na supposed infantile state. It would puzzle such theorists exceed-\\ningly, to find, even in our day of acknowledged light and civilization,\\nafter a lapse of nearly four thousand years, either a man more\\nexalted in mental or moral qualities than Job, or a picture of family\\nreligion more delightful and instructive than that which is afforded\\nby this book.\\nHis birth-place and his family connexions are unknown. There\\nare six different places in the East, where, it is said, sleep his ashes\\nand there are also numerous traditions among the Arabs respecting\\nhim. These things corroborate the idea suggested by the book\\nitself that the residence of the patriarch poet was in the northern\\npart of Arabia.\\nIn his worldly condition, at the time when his story opens, he", "height": "3520", "width": "2224", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0076.jp2"}, "75": {"fulltext": "JOB AND HIS FAMILY. 65\\nwas blessed beyond the ordinary lot of men. Says the sacred\\nhistorian, This man was the greatest of all the men of the East.\\nHe held the station which at the present day is designated by the\\ntitle of Emir or Sheik, and his mode of hfe was the natural com-\\nbination of the pastoral nomadic life of his age and his country with\\nthe more settled and permanent manner of living which his wealth\\nwould induce.\\nAt the period in which we are contemplating him, Job had pro-\\nbably reached the age of seventy or eighty and, according to the\\nlength of human life at that time, he was in the full vigor of manly\\nstrength. To form some estimate of the high esteem which his\\nsincere piety and undoubted worth had produced, you have but to\\nmark his passage through the streets, as he proceeds to the gates of\\nthe city, where the people are wont to assemble upon public occa-\\nsions, and where the ordinary judicial courts are held, in which it\\nwas the duty of Job, as Emir or Sheik of his tribe, to preside. He\\nhimself thus describes it\\nWhen I went out to the gate through the city,\\nWhen I prepared my seat in the street,\\nThe young men saw me and hid themselves\\nAnd the aged arose and stood up s\\nThe princes refrained talking,\\nAnd laid their hands on their mouth\\nThe nobles held their peace,\\nAnd their tongue cleaved to the roof of their mouth.\\nWhen the ear heard me, then it blessed me,\\nAnd when the eye saw me it gave witness to me.\\nUnto me men gave ear and awaited,\\nAnd kept silence at my counsel\\nAfter my words they spake not again\\nAnd my speech dropped upon them\\nAnd they waited for me, as for the rain.\\nIt is not, however, in his public life that we desire to note his\\ncharacter, but in his private relations, as a man, a father, and a", "height": "3496", "width": "2188", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0077.jp2"}, "76": {"fulltext": "66 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nhead of a family. Let us then endeavor in imagination to follow\\nhim, as he retires from the court in the gate, and seeks the repose\\nand enjoyment of his home. His official duties are not allowed to\\ninterfere with those which he owes to his family and to his God.\\nLet us suppose the evening sacrifice to have been offered, and the\\nfamily of the patriarch to be seated in their usual places. The\\nfather s eyes rest for a few moments upon the happy group\\nwith paternal pride, and then are raised in adoration and thankful-\\nness to Him, whose name is to be blessed whether he gives or takes\\naway.\\nThe momentary silence is broken by the father s effort to teach\\nhis children the knowledge of divine things. He speaks to them of\\nGod he informs them that there is but one supreme, wise, and\\nglorious Being that he is almighty, omniscient, inscrutable, invisi-\\nble, gracious, ready to forgive the truly penitent indeed, if we are\\nallowed to judge of the extent of Job s knowledge of God, from the\\nlanguage used in tins book, we must conclude that in all points, not\\nexpressly revealed by the Gospel of Christ, the knowledge of Job\\nwas not inferior to our own. Nowhere can we find descriptions of\\nthe Most High, which, in grandeur, beauty, and truth, surpass those\\ncontained here. Where in what book, ancient or modern can\\nwe find a better or more sublime description of the impossibility of\\ncomprehending the divine nature than the following\\nBehold God is great and we know him not,\\nNeither can the number of his years be searched out.\\nCanst thou by searching find out God\\nCanst thou find out the Almighty to perfection\\nIt is as high as Heaven what canst thou do 1\\nDeeper than hell what canst thou know\\nThe measure thereof is longer than the earth,\\nAnd broader than the sea.\\nThis great and glorious Being, Job tells his children, was their\\ncreator and preserver that he formed man, and created the earth", "height": "3520", "width": "2216", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0078.jp2"}, "77": {"fulltext": "JOB AND HIS FAMILY. 6*7\\nand the heavens and that, therefore, it became them to remember\\nhim now, in the days of their youth. There is a passage of\\nunequalled beauty and sublimity, which, if it be allowable to con-\\nsider it as illustrating Job s knowledge of creation, we may quote, as\\nthe substance of what he taught his children on this subject.\\nWhere wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth 1\\nDeclare if thou hast understanding,\\nWho hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest\\nOr who hath stretched the line upon it 1\\nWhereupon are the foundations. thereof fastened\\nOr who laid the corner stone thereof?\\nWhen the morning stars sang together\\nAnd all the sons of God shouted for joy\\nOr who shut up the sea with doors,\\nWhen it brake forth, as it had issued out of the womb 1\\nWhen I made the cloud the garment thereof,\\nAnd thick darkness a swaddling band for it,\\nAnd brake it up for my decreed place,\\nAnd set bars and doors\\nAnd said Hitherto shalt thou come, but no farther\\nAnd here shall thy proud waves be stayed V\\nJob was also well acquainted with the true history of man and\\nhis fall and he showed his children how impossible it was for man\\nto obtain by his own exertions, a righteousness which would justify\\nhim before God. He talked to them of their innate depravity, of\\nthe true source and hope of pardon, and made known to them\\nsomething of the mode of pardon, as he sought to explain and urge\\nthe duty of sacrificing to the Lord he himself, as the officiating\\npriest of his family, setting them a noble example.\\nFrom such instructions, gratifying fruits might with reason be\\nexpected, nor are we disappointed a single glimpse is given, but it\\nis such as enables us to form a just estimate of its real value.\\nAs time rolls on, the sons of Job themselves become heads of", "height": "3492", "width": "2212", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0079.jp2"}, "78": {"fulltext": "68 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nfamilies but though they have left the paternal roof, we find them\\nunforgetful of the paternal associations and home enjoyments.\\nSeparation in life cannot make them strangers to each other the\\nfamily bonds are not sundered new ties, however powerful and\\ntender, cannot weaken the ties of brotherhood and the family love\\ntaught in the father s hall, burns with an undimmed brightness.\\nWhat an insight does this fact alone give us into the religious and\\nmoral training which they had received It assures us that no\\nbitter memories, no sad jealousies, no family jars, existed there. In\\nthis respect, how superior were they to most of the families of the\\nPatriarchs, whose history is recorded in the word of God Jealousy\\nbroke the peace of Abraham s family, and made his eldest son an\\nalien from his father s house. The sons of Isaac dwelt not harmo-\\nniously beneath the same roof, and for the sake of peace had to\\nseparate. The sons of Jacob envied their brother Joseph to such\\nan extent, that they drove him from among them. Aaron and\\nMiriam were not always at peace with Moses and even in the\\nfamily of Adam, unbrotherly feeling and irreligion wrought\\nfratricide. But no such record disgraces the family of Job there\\naffection reigned reigned unbroken and undisturbed even separate\\ninterests, and new associations and ties could not lessen it. And\\ncan we trace this to any other cause than such religious training as\\nwe have supposed No it is religion alone which can soften down\\nthe asperities of our nature, and thus bind together. It is the love\\nof God which produces love the harmony of the family circle is\\nno peculiar characteristic, where God is unknown and unhonored.\\nAt certain periods, we are informed, the family of Job were wont\\nto hold family reunions, probably upon the birth-day of each\\nbrother for at that age of the world, and in that land, the birth-\\nday was usually observed with great solemnity and rejoicing and\\nthe Chaldee version of the Bible adds, that each of these feasts\\nlasted seven days a supposition not at all improbable. The sacred\\nhistorian mentions a single fact concerning these family gatherings,", "height": "3520", "width": "2268", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0080.jp2"}, "79": {"fulltext": "JOB AND HIS FAMILY. 60\\nwhich, however simple in itself, is full of meaning. He tells us that\\nthe joy of the brothers was not complete without the presence of\\ntheir sisters. This fact at once gives elevation, beauty, and character\\nto these meetings. We ask no stronger, nor more decided\\ntestimony, both as to the character of these young men and to the\\nmoral and proper conduct of these feasts, than we have here\\nthere cannot be a more significant proof of the refined and elevated\\ncharacter of the family than this attention to their sisters. The\\nregard paid to females, and the place which they hold in society, is\\na perfect test of the state of refinement in a community. Nay, it\\nma}^ be used as a test of the prevalence of true religion. It is the\\nBible alone which has placed woman in her proper station on a\\nlevel with and by the side of man. The single declaration, there-\\nfore, they sent and called for their three sisters to eat and to drink\\nwith them, must be regarded as conclusive evidence, not only of\\nthe elevated, moral, and refined character of Job s family, but also\\nof their family piety.\\nBut there is another fact mentioned, and another scene presented,\\nwhich not only show the correctness of this view, but add incalcula-\\nbly to the beauty of this family picture. We allude to the conduct\\nof Job, and the closing act of these festivities. And it was, so\\nsays the sacred historian, when the days of their feasting were\\ngone about, that Job sent and sanctified them, and rose up early in\\nthe morning and offered burnt offerings, according to the number\\nof them all for Job said, it may be that my sons have sinned and\\ncursed God in their hearts. Thus did Job continually.\\nIn these family meetings Job greatly rejoiced but he feared\\nalso he feared lest God had not been remembered as he ought to\\nhave been. He did not know that any particular sin had been\\ncommitted by his children he had seen nothing wrong, but know-\\ning the native depravity of the heart, he was apprehensive that\\nGod, as the author of their blessings, might not have been truly\\nhonored and, therefore, early on that morning which followed the", "height": "3500", "width": "2212", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0081.jp2"}, "80": {"fulltext": "TO FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nclose of these joyful seasons, he sent for his children he brought\\nthem again around the family altar. Again, as in former years, their\\nbeloved father is before them, as an officiating priest of the Most\\nHigh, and for each child he offers a distinct sacrifice. As each\\ncame forward in his turn, and laying his hand upon the head of the\\nvictim, prayed for the pardon of any sin which he had committed,\\nand then beheld his anxious parent slay the lamb as in his stead, and\\nsprinkle the atoning blood on the altar, not without his added\\nprayer, must not that child have felt that his festive joy had become\\nan act of religion, by which God was honored Must not the in-\\nfluence of such a conclusion to their family gatherings have been\\nmost powerful How deep must have been the love, and how\\ngreat the reverence felt for their father We need no longer won-\\nder at the picture which the family of Job presents. A father so\\nunremitting in his pious care, so solicitous lest his children should\\nsin and offend God, making even their family reunions and social\\npleasures religious acts, continuing his anxiety and care even after\\nhis children were settled in life, could not but be blessed in his\\nchildren, even though the Abrahamic promise had not yet been\\ngiven I will be a God to thee, and to thy seed after thee.\\nWhat a religious atmosphere must there have been in this family\\nand may not we, who live in these more highly privileged days,\\nlearn a lesson from this picture of a long by-gone age Job had no\\nwritten Bible. He lived before the Bible was, and, as far as we\\nknow, had no promise that God would be the father of those\\nchildren whose pious parents had dedicated them to Him in solemn\\nrite. But to us the volume of God s revealed will has been given\\ncomplete to us the Abrahamic covenant and promise have been\\nmade known and yet, where shall we find parents in our day ful-\\nfilling their parental duties in a manner superior to Job Do we\\nfeel the deep anxiety lest our children should forget God, which he\\nmanifested Where, in Christian lands, is a religious influence and\\natmosphere thrown around the family, even equal to those which", "height": "3544", "width": "2220", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0082.jp2"}, "81": {"fulltext": "JOB AND IHS FAMILY. 7l\\npervaded the household of this ancient patriarch Yet this, is the\\ngreat secret of family religion, the true mode of attaining the early\\nconversion of children\u00e2\u0080\u0094 to make the atmosphere of the family more\\nlike that of Heaven, and not so entirely of earth. It does not\\namount to much to forbid a child this or that particular worldly\\nattraction, when nothing but a worldly atmosphere is breathed at the\\nfireside. Let parents live for Heaven; let them feel that their\\nresponsibilities with regard to their children, instead of ending with\\nfitting them to act their parts well in this world, have only com\\nmenced here that their families have been intrusted to them to be\\neducated for an immortal existence, for God and Heaven, and not\\nfor man and earth and let this sentiment breathe in their instruc-\\ntions, in their habits, in their lives, and it will bring forth\\nglorious results. When our children have been exposed to\\ninfluences and have mingled in scenes where God was far more\\nlikely to have been forgotten than in the family festival of Job s\\nsons, how seldom do parents now feel as he did. We are,\\nespecially in our large cities, much exposed to worldly influences\\nit is impossible to preserve our families from them but we should,\\ntherefore, be the more anxious that the family influences possess not\\nthe same worldliness. Job sacrificed his burnt offerings, for fear his\\nchildren had forgotten God, when in the enjoyment of their social\\nblessings. When our sons and daughters have mingled in the gay\\nthrong, where the harp and the viol have excluded all thoughts of\\nGod, how few parents deem it necessary to sanctify them for the\\nmorning offering, and kneeling with them at the family altar, ask\\nGod to forgive them, if it be that in the scenes through which they\\nhave passed they had sinned, and forgotten God. And should not\\nthis be one great practical lesson learnt from this history How\\ncan our children remember their Creator in the days of their youth,\\nif there be no remembrance of Him in their homes If the atmo-\\nsphere of home be all worldly, be an atmosphere where God is not, we\\nmight more hopefully expect to gather grapes from thorns and yet", "height": "3500", "width": "2188", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0083.jp2"}, "82": {"fulltext": "V2 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nhow many families are there where every family influence is against\\nGod where the mother s praises and the father s smile unite to\\nproduce and to deepen the impression that this world bounds our\\nexistence, and that there is no brighter, higher, holier state, for\\nwhich we are to prepare And thus, by the very attractions of\\nhome and family such parents are cheering their children onward to\\nthat wretched world where love is unknown, and where dwells that\\nmalignant being who has ruined our race. Satan hates the family\\ncircle which religion binds together he ever labors to disturb its\\nharmony, for he well knows that there is no fortress so impregnable\\nto his attacks. Hence he determined, if the power should be\\nallowed him, to break up the family of Job. He could not bear to\\ncontemplate the happy picture. It was too beautiful for an earth\\nover which he ruled. It was, to him, too much like another Eden\\nhe must enter it. For wise reasons God allowed him to enter.\\nThe history of the origin of the sorrows of Job may be justly\\nplaced among the many things which give interest to this wonder-\\nful book. It gives us an insight into the providence of God, and\\nshows us how intimate and how connected is the conduct of the\\nchildren of God upon the earth with his. children in the angelic\\nw T orld, and how deeply interested are both heaven and hell in the\\nconsistent walk of the Christian.\\nIt has, indeed, been supposed by some that the account of the\\ninterview between God and Satan, contained in the first and second\\nchapters of this book, is so improbable a transaction that it throws\\nan air of fiction over the whole narrative. But we cannot for one\\nmoment allow the truth of the supposition, or admit such a princi-\\nple in the interpretation of Scripture. If God would convey a true\\nidea to us, he must use our language, and the aid of imagery with\\nwhich we are familiar from the necessity of the case, therefore, the\\nBible must contain many representations, even of himself, draw T n\\nfrom our own circumstances. It may be thus here, for the language\\nand imagery are evidently taken from the proceedings of an earthly", "height": "3520", "width": "2232", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0084.jp2"}, "83": {"fulltext": "JOB AND HIS FAMILY. *73\\nmonarch, seated upon his throne, and before whom the various mes-\\nsengers which he had sent forth through his dominions were\\nassembled, to render in their several statements. We say that this\\nmay be the case, but while we make this remark we attempt not to\\nshow how far the language is mere imagery, for we are certain that\\nthe whole account is a representation of facts, of realities, and, there-\\nfore, may be an actual glimpse into the spiritual land.\\nAngels, we know, are in fact employed by God for important\\npurposes in the government of his kingdom. They are interested in\\nthe conduct and affairs of Christians Are they not all ministering\\nspirits, sent forth to minister to the heirs of salvation V\\nThe account also here given of the character of Satan accords\\nentirely with the uniform representation of him given in other parts\\nof the Bible and it is impossible to prove that he does not now\\nperform the same part in the trials of good men which it is said he\\ndid in the case of Job. There would be, therefore, no impropriety,\\nno absurdity in interpreting the whole narrative literally as an\\nactual scene we must, indeed, do so with regard to Satan s descent\\nupon Job and forgetfulness of the fact that God allowed him to be\\nbuffeted by Satan, that Satan regulated all the circumstances, is one\\ngreat reason why students of this book have erred in their under-\\nstanding and interpretation of it.\\nJob we have seen to be an honored prince, respected by all a\\nman of great wealth, blessed with a peculiarly happy family, whose\\nlife had been one of almost unexampled prosperity and who had\\nbeen thus blessed, as the fruit of his own eminent piety. God had\\nnot hitherto allowed Satan to trouble him, and he was known in\\nheaven as the peculiar favorite of his Maker. God is represented\\nas saying of him, There is none like him in the earth. Satan is\\nrepresented, on the other hand, as having no confidence in him, and\\ntherefore maintaining that Job would prove no exception, if God\\nwould only allow him to be assailed as others had been. Doth\\nJob fear God for naught is his religion disinterested has he not", "height": "3508", "width": "2172", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0085.jp2"}, "84": {"fulltext": "4 FAMILY PICTURES ER0M THE BIBLE.\\nbeen abundantly rewarded for his piety by the blessings heaped\\nupon him have not I been prevented from coming near to him. to\\ntempt and harass him Job s religion is caused merely by his\\nabundant prosperity, and if his wealth were removed and his pious\\nfamily destroyed, he would show his real character, and would curse\\nHim whom he now praises as his benefactor.\\nThe sorrows and trials which followed are designed to test the\\nquestion, whether the piety of Job was of this kind. God allows\\nSatan to enter his defences, and leaves him in his hands for a sea-\\nson. We soon see what it is for a good man to be in the power of\\nthis wicked being, and how needful the petition which our Lord\\ntaught us, Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.\\nThe birth-day of Job s eldest son had again come round; his\\nbrethren and sisters had assembled at his house to renew the plea-\\nsant days of their childhood. The heart of the patriarch was full of\\njoy he saw his children all assembled again beneath the roof of\\ntheir elder brother. No breach had been made by death in their\\ncircle, and he had retired to his own dwelling, perchance to bow\\nbefore God and render the thanksgiving which his mercy and good-\\nness demanded. But while thus seated the bright skies are over-\\ncast, the clouds have gathered, an unnatural darkness veils earth\\nand sky. Suddenly a breathless messenger stands before him with\\nterrible tidings. Scarcely has he finished his sad story ere another\\nand another is present with a more fearful tale. In a moment the\\nrich and happy man stands in almost solitary desolation his\\nproperty all swept away, his family broken, his beloved children\\ncold and mangled corpses beneath the ruins of their dwelling.\\nWherever he turned his eye, there lay the wreck of some fond hope\\nthe fragments of some long cherished expectation. We can\\nhardly conceive of a more complete change. Blow follows blow in\\nsuch rapid succession, that not a single moment is allowed him for\\nreflection or prayer. An hour before, and he was the most favored\\nSon of the East he stood like a large and noble tree, strong and", "height": "3520", "width": "2220", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0086.jp2"}, "85": {"fulltext": "JOB AND HIS FAMILY. *75\\nbeautiful in its proportions, with waving branches and luxuriant\\nfoliage but the storm came upon him, and he now stands like the\\nlone and solitary trunk, its branches torn off, broken, and scattered,\\nShelterless himself, and sheltering none. How great the power\\nof Satan to work us ill How speedily did he find instruments\\nThe minds and purposes of the Sabeans and Chaldseans were all\\nunder his control. The elements also were alike obedient to his will.\\nAt the very moment which he selected the lightnings flashed and\\nthe winds blew, proclaiming him to be, as the Bible calls him, the\\nprince of the power of the air. True, indeed, he could not have\\ndone these things if God had not permitted him but from what he\\ndid, we may easily see what he both can and would do if all restraint\\nwere withdrawn, and what we may expect him to do in the eternal\\nworld to those who shall dwell with him. But he had no power\\nover the spirit of Job. Then Job rent his mantle, and in accordance\\nwith oriental custom shaved his head, and fell down upon the\\nground, and worshipped and said, ISTaked came I out of my mother\\nearth, and naked shall I return thither. The Lord gave and the\\nLord hath taken away blessed be the name of the Lord. How\\ncompletely has Satan been foiled He said Job would curse God, if\\nthus tried he had tried him, and all the result of his malice was\\nthis Job blessed God the more. He worshipped, he uttered no\\ndenunciation upon the Sabeans, no imprecation upon the Chaldse-\\nans. He did not curse the tempest and the storm he worshipped\\nGod How sublime, how exalted that worship what unwavering\\nfaith what clear and honoring views of the character of God does\\nit display The Lord gave and the Lord hath taken away, blessed\\nbe the name of the Lord. The words do not merely acknowledge\\nthe right of God to take away what he had given, but they assert\\nthat he is equally to be adored when he takes away as wmen he\\ngives. He gave in love He has not changed He still loves, and\\nthe love which prompted Him to give now prompts to take away.\\nWhere in Israel, where throughout the chosen land shall we find", "height": "3516", "width": "2228", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0087.jp2"}, "86": {"fulltext": "*76 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nsuperior faith, more entire confidence in the loving character of God\\nBefore this trial God said of his servant, there is none like him in\\nthe Earth. May we not in this day of superior light renew this\\ndeclaration\\nNor is this conduct of Job in any respect to be ascribed to apathy\\nor indifference. His character, as displayed in the deep interest\\nwhich he felt for his children s spiritual welfare, when in their pros-\\nperity, forbids such an idea his subsequent conduct also shows that\\nhis grief was intense. No, it was the result, the legitimate fruit of\\ntrue piety it was true resignation, its source was the great truth,\\nGod did it, and he does it in love. Religion, so far from making\\nthe heart insensible to grief, increases the susceptibility to sorrow\\nand suffering but at the same time it exercises more decidedly its\\nremedial and comforting powers. And we here see how it does\\nthis it leads us to recognise the hand of God in our trials, it bids us\\nfeel the affliction, because God sends it, because he means that we\\nshould feel it but at the same time it reminds us that it is a kind,\\nwise, loving father who afflicts, the same who gave, and who has\\nnot changed in his love, when he takes away. He bids us weep,\\nbut it is at his feet.\\nBut Job had not yet drunk the dregs of the cup which Satan\\nwas allowed to place in his hands there was a still more severe\\ntrial of his spirit to be endured. A bodily disease is sent upon him,\\nof a most distressing kind. It is thus described, And Satan smote\\nJob with sore boils from the sole of his foot unto his crown. And\\nthe manner in which it affected him we may learn from the\\nsufferer himself. He tells us, that it made his nights restless and\\nfull of tossings to and fro that it clothed his flesh with clods of\\ndust, which he removed with a potsherd, or fragment of a broken\\nearthen vessel that it made his face foul with weeping, that it\\ncorrupted his breath, and made his bones, pierced with pain, to\\ncleave to his skin, while it made his skin black, and burnt up his\\nbones with heat. Contrast his condition as thus described, with", "height": "3544", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0088.jp2"}, "87": {"fulltext": "JOB AND HIS FAMILY. 77\\nthat in which he is first presented to us, and you will be able to\\nform some estimate of his afflictions.\\nThere, upon a heap of ashes, out of the city, away from the\\nhabitations of men, sits weeping, the man of wealth and of distinc-\\ntion, before whom men bowed, and held their peace in his hand, a\\npiece of broken earthen-ware, with which he is scraping his body,\\ncovered with undressed and most painful sores. Nothing done to\\nheal him, no kindness shown in taking care of him separated from\\nhis home, his children dead doomed to endure his sufferings\\nwithout sympathy. There is, however, one member of his once\\nhappy family, who survives one from whom he might expect the\\nwarmest sympathy. The partner of his joyful life remains surely,\\nshe with her woman s heart and clinging attachment, though all\\nelse forsake her husband, will be with him, to cheer his heart, to\\nsoothe his spirit, to help him bear his unparalleled sufferings?\\nDoubtless she would have done so, had it not been for the influence\\nof Satan. She probably felt his distress and changed circumstances\\neven more bitterly than he did, and the trial was more than she\\ncould bear.\\nIt is customary to regard the wife of Job as deficient in attach-\\nment to her husband, but there is no certain evidence of this the\\ncontrary seems to be the case. Had she been called on to bear in\\nher own person the sickness and pain which she saw her beloved\\nhusband endure, womanlike, she would probably have borne all\\nwith resignation but hers was a harder lot instead of enduring\\nsuffering herself, she had to endure the sight of the sufferings of one\\nwhom she loved one dearer to her heart than all others. She had\\nsuffered with him the loss of property, and as far as we know had\\nbeen silent; she had borne with him the loss of their beloved\\nchildren, and her heart had doubtless ached, as only a mother s\\nheart could ache, under such a bereavement but dumb with grief,\\nshe had uttered no plaint, she had mourned in secret over her\\nterrible affliction. At length as her grief somewhat subsides, she is", "height": "3504", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0089.jp2"}, "88": {"fulltext": "78 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nable to tliink of the sufferings which the father of her children must\\nendure she seeks him out. Alas what a sight meets her eye Is\\nthat bowed, weeping, loathsome object, seated in the open air, upon\\nthe ash-heap is that her noble-hearted, her generous and pious\\nhusband Oh, it is more than her already crushed heart could\\nbear her piety yields before her affection, and under the natural\\nimpulse, and in evident distress, more on her husband s account,\\nthan her owm, she abruptly utters the unadvised words, Dost thou\\nstill retain thy integrity? Curse God and die. Her language\\nsimply implies that if all these sorrows were the rewards of a pious\\nlife, it was not worth while to retain his regard for God. If God\\ncould thus afflict his righteous servant, he w T as not worthy of\\nconfidence or service.\\nThe thought was Satan s, but it- accorded with the natural feelings\\nof fallen sinful human nature, when sorely afflicted. Others have\\nfelt in a similar way, and have similarly expressed their feelings\\nthey have even called God a hard master, and given vent to feelings\\nof rebellion and murmuring.\\nThe reply of Job exalts him the more, and causes his piety to\\nshine with more brilliant lustre. Her unexpected impropriety of\\nspeech doubtless increased the sorrows of the already much\\nenduring man. He saw with pain that the piety of his wife was\\novercome by his accumulated calamities, but his only reply is the\\nsad and gentle rebuke, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women\\nspeaketh. In Bible language, folly is the opposite of religion.\\nThou speakest as one destitute of piety what, shall we receive good\\nat the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil This is the true\\nexpression of real piety it submits to all the arrangements of God\\nwithout a murmur, it acknowledges that it has no claim whatever\\nupon God certainly no claim which makes it wrong or unkind\\nfor God to visit with calamity those upon whom he bestows so many\\nundeserved benefits. In all this, says the sacred historian, Job did\\nnot sin with his lips.", "height": "3552", "width": "2288", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0090.jp2"}, "89": {"fulltext": "JOB AND HI3 FAMILY. 7 9\\nBut we have not yet fathomed the real depth of his afflictions,\\nnor seen the full force of his trials. We have as yet only looked at\\nthe outer man we have not noticed the thrusts of Satan upon his\\nspirit, and have therefore only contemplated the lighter parts of his\\nsorrows. Let us then endeavor to form some idea of the trials\\nwhich the inner man endured.\\nThe design of Satan was to induce Job to curse God hence the\\nsuddenness and the order of the repeated blows with which lie at\\nfirst assailed him. He sought to excite wrath, anger, the desire of\\nvengeance, in the heart of Job, against the human-instruments who\\nhad robbed him of his property and when he supposed that the\\nheart, of Job was filled with passion, and burning for vengeance\\nagainst the Sabeans and Chaldeans, without giving him time to soothe\\nhis excited feelings by prayer, and perhaps to prevent him from\\nhaving recourse to prayer, he brings the news of the destruction of\\nhis children by the winds of Heaven thus seeking to turn the\\nunholy passions which he supposed had been excited, directly upon\\nthe Creator of the winds, and thus make him vent his angry\\nfeelings against God.\\nWe should notice, also, the peculiar juncture at which Satan robs\\nJob of his children we have seen his anxiety for their spiritual and\\neternal welfare and that it was especially called forth at those\\nseasons when they rejoiced in their family gatherings. It was one\\nof these occasions which Satan selected for their destruction, before\\ntheir father had offered his usual sacrifice, as atonement for their\\nsins. The design of Satan was, that from the greatness and sudden\\nnature of the calamity, Job might conclude that it was on account\\nof their sins that the Lord smote them that he might feel the\\nanguish of fearing that his children had died before the Lord, with\\nsins unatoned and unforgiven. He would have the fearful idea\\npress upon his spirit, that so very remarkable a providence as the\\ndestruction of his whole family on the same day and hour at which\\nhis property was swept away, and the fall of that particular house", "height": "3496", "width": "2212", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0091.jp2"}, "90": {"fulltext": "80 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nalone, in which his children were gathered, while the storm had\\ndestroyed no other dwelling* in the neighborhood, was a proof of\\nGod s special anger, not only with him, but with his children judge\\nye how this thought must have pierced the heart of the anxious\\nfather\\nSatan now allows some period of time to intervene before he\\nattacks the person of Job how great the interval we are not told.\\nIt was probably just sufficient to enable his victim to feel the full\\nmisery of his changed worldly circumstances, to mark the diminish-\\ned respect and regard which followed the loss of property. Job\\nspeaks most touchingly of this\\nBut now, they that are younger than I have me in derision, Whose fathers I\\nwould have disdained to have set with the dogs of my flock.\\nAnd now I am their song, yea I am their by-word.\\nThey abhor me, they flee far from me,\\nAnd spare not to spit in my face\\nBecause He hath loosed my cord and afflicted me,\\nThey have also let loose the bridle before me.\\nThis is, perhaps, the most bitter ingredient contained in the loss\\nof property the changed conduct of the world, the diminution of\\nrespect which accompanies it. Many, in our large cities, can give am-\\nple testimony on this subject. How has the iron entered their souls,\\nas they have been made to feel the difference with which men treated\\nthem The loss of wealth they could bear calmly they could\\ntrace the hand of Providence in that but the loss of that respect\\nwhich was paid to them as the possessors of wealth, cut them to the\\nheart. This we see Job felt most keenly. It is of this he com-\\nplains, and complains with great severity, and perhaps with indig-\\nnant pride and anger. I would have disdained to have set their\\nfathers with the dogs of my flock. We praise not Job for this it was,\\nperhaps, his first sin with his lips but we see how he was tried by\\nthis circumstance. As soon as Satan, most wise to distress, found", "height": "3520", "width": "2284", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0092.jp2"}, "91": {"fulltext": "JOB AND HIS FAMILY. 81\\nthe spirit of Job sufficiently moved by the effect of his first assault,\\nhe prepares for the second, and. sends the bodily affliction. We\\nhave already spoken of the trying nature of the affliction, as pre-\\nsented to the outward senses but this was the smaller part. There\\nwas cruel wisdom displayed by Satan in its selection. It was a\\ndisease which, while it demanded not sympathy as if dangerous to\\nlife, not only made its victim an offensive and unpleasant sight to\\nbeholders, but was more calculated, perhaps, than any other, to dis-\\ntress the mind, and produce the sin which Satan sought to effect-\\nThe whole system of nerves, by which sensibility is given to our\\nframes, lie immediately beneath the skin. It was directly in the\\nregion of these nerves that the disease of Job was placed. Severe\\npains, nervous irritability, sleeplessness, and burning fever, were the\\nnecessary result. Let him who hath seen the brain so disturbed by\\na disorganized nervous system as to reel and totter upon the very\\nconfines of raving madness, judge what must be the amount of\\neffort required to hold the soul in patience under such a disease.\\nTo all these physical and mental sufferings we must add the direct\\neffort of Satan upon the mind of Job, through his sympathizing and\\nsorrowful wife we must not lose sight of the fact that Satan had\\none single direct object in view, from the track of which, like a\\nbloodhound, he never swerved for a single moment. His aim was\\nto induce Job to curse or renounce God and hence, with consum-\\nmate art, when by the bodily pains and mental anguish he had\\nprepared him to entertain the evil thought, he then suggests the\\nvery thought, by means of his suffering, bereaved wife throws the\\nvery words into his mind by the tones of a familiar voice, softened\\nand trembling under the severest affliction which a mother can\\nendure.\\nBut all these fail. Still more powerful influences, therefore, must\\nbe brought to bear upon his spirit; he must be irritated by injus-\\ntice be compelled to reply, while laboring under bodily pains, to\\nfalse charges. Surely some improper w T ords will drop from his lips.\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a24*", "height": "3496", "width": "2212", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0093.jp2"}, "92": {"fulltext": "82 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nAnd here again we have an exhibition of the wonderful art of the\\ngreat enemy of our souls. Having tried in vain to induce the\\nunholy feeling at which he aimed by these multiplied external and\\nphysical inflictions, he prepares to operate upon his mind by the\\nmost powerful instrumentality of his most sincere friends friends\\nwho cluno; to him when all others had deserted him, and who thus\\ngave the most decided evidence of the strength and reality of their\\nattachment.\\nThe rumor of his unprecedented calamities had spread far and\\nthree of his aged friends, men of exalted worth and station, having\\nheard of them, concert a plan to visit him in company, and to unite\\ntheir efforts for his welfare, to mourn with him, and to comfort him.\\nIn the prosecution of their benevolent purpose they approach the\\nplace where they are told they will find their friend. They see in\\nthe distance a most wretched object, so wretched, so altered his\\nwhole appearance, that they would not have recognised him had\\nthey not been prepared for the change by previous reports. They\\nwere all so deeply affected at the sight that they burst into tears,\\nrent their mantles, as expressive of their grief, and sprinkled dust\\nupon their heads, as mourners in that day were wont to do. On\\ncoming into his immediate presence, they sat down with him upon\\nthe ground. So overwhelmed were they with the sight of his\\nmelancholy condition, and so deep their sympathy, that none of\\nthem attempted to give utterance to his feelings for the space of\\nseven days and nights. They probably felt, as the full vision of his\\nsufferings burst upon them, that the ordinary consolations would not\\nsuit the case. In this state of mind they were peculiarly open to\\nthe suggestions of the malevolent being into whose hands God had\\npermitted Job to fall. Satan therefore easily induced them to adopt\\nhis own ideas, and shook their confidence in the piety of their friend.\\nThey seem unanimously to have adopted the opinion, that these\\ngreat calamities were proofs of great criminality, and, therefore, that\\nJob could not be the real friend of God. In accordance with this", "height": "3544", "width": "2284", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0094.jp2"}, "93": {"fulltext": "JOE AND HIS FAMILY. 83\\nidea, instead of seeking to console, and making their real sympathy\\na comfort, they regard him as a hypocrite, and administer rebuke\\nand reproof, trying to convince him that God, on whom he relied,\\nwas displeased with him. Oh it required an intellect of the highest\\norder, as well as exalted piety, to resist all these influences How\\ntrying must it have been to the bowed sufferer to feel that his own\\nfriends, aged and dear friends, friends who had known him long and\\nfamiliarly, did not understand him, had lost confidence in him,\\ncould not be persuaded of his sincerity and truthfulness! What a\\nsense of isolation and injustice must have weighed down his spirit\\nand if, in his efforts to vindicate himself under all these circum-\\nstances, an impatient word dropped from his lips, or his self-vindica-\\ntion was carried too far, who of us will dare to do more than to\\npity him or while we do acknowledge the sin, must we not still\\nadmire the piety and patience of the man How far superior to the\\ngreat mass of men does he show himself, even while he sins Yes,\\nJob did sin but even in the midst of his sin he presents a spectacle\\nof sublime moral greatness, such as our world has never seen in\\nany other mere man. He did sin but we all feel that it was the sin\\nof a great and good man. Jesus Christ is the only perfect model.\\nEndeavor to bring up before your mind this noble sufferer as here\\npresented, to realize the powerful and terrible forces by which he\\nwas at the same time assailed, all urging to one single point to\\ninduce him to curse God, to renounce Him, as the only object of\\nlove and worship.\\nYou must bear in mind throughout the whole of his trials, who\\nwas the real adversary who had arrayed all his forces against the\\nsolitary man. You must not forget that it was that mighty and\\npowerful Being who once stood near the throne of God that noble\\ncreature, who had mind and power enough to dare, even in heaven,\\nto think of seizing the throne of the Almighty who had power and\\nmight and hardihood enough to imagine that it was possible to be\\nsuccessful in a contest, even with Jehovah that Being, who was", "height": "3500", "width": "2196", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0095.jp2"}, "94": {"fulltext": "84 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nable to overcome our first parents in all their glory as they came\\nfrom the hands of their Creator that fearful One, who dared to\\nmeet in hostile array the Son of God when he was here on earth,\\nand to measure his power with Omnipotence. It was this mighty\\nfoe, let loose and unrestrained by God, who stands before the\\nsolitary stripped sufferer, driving upon him all his forces, assailing\\nhim with the memory of joys and comforts torn away by violence,\\nassailing him with the vivid picture of his scattered fortune swept\\naway in an hour urging on his throbbing heart the memory of the\\ncruel death pangs of his loved children setting before him the\\nvision of their mangled bodies, and urging him by all these to\\nrenounce his piety pleading with him by the pains of his body, by\\nthe anguish of his soul under obloquy and contempt, pleading by\\nthe solicitation and sympathy of his wife assailing him with the\\ninjustice of his friends, and by their strong arguments to prove to\\nhim that God was not his God. And yet that solitary, lone sufferer\\nstands firm, clinging to his God with an unbroken and unrelaxing\\ngrasp, exclaiming in his darkest hour, Though He slay me, yet\\nwill I trust in him I know that my Redeemer liveth and if in\\nhis anguish both of body and soul he do exclaim, cursed be the\\nday of my birth, I am weary of life and if in his self-justification\\nhe do sin, must we not still admire and adore the grace of God, by\\nwhich a creature so weak in himself was enabled to stand so firmly\\nand so long without sin, and to swerve so little from the pathway of\\nduty?\\nThe trial of faith, resignation, and integrity now draws to an end.\\nThe arch-demon who had directed it is completely baffled. God\\nhimself in some way visibly appears to pronounce judgment, shows\\nthat he has been no uninterested spectator of his servant s trials,\\nand speaks to Job out of the whirlwind. The address ascribed to\\nHim bears innate evidence that God alone is its author. As a com-\\nbination of dignity, sublimity, grandeur, and condescension, it is far\\nbeyond anything delivered in human language. It asserts the", "height": "3520", "width": "2292", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0096.jp2"}, "95": {"fulltext": "JOB AND HIS FAMILY. 85\\nsupremacy of the Most High, and that he must be adored the\\nincomprehensibility of his wisdom, and therefore that it is vain to\\narraign it the omnipotence of his power, and therefore that it is\\nabsurd to resist it the universality of his greatness, and therefore\\nthat it is blindness and ingratitude to deny it.\\nThe awful and sublime address is listened to with conviction.\\nThe humiliated sufferer confesses the folly of his arrogance and pre-\\nsumption, abhors himself for his conduct, and exclaims in lowliness\\nof soul, I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear, but now\\nmine eye seeth thee therefore I abhor nryself and repent in dust\\nand ashes. Behold I am vile.\\nThe departure of Satan immediately succeeds. The self-abasement\\nof Job is accepted his friends are severely reprimanded for their\\njudgment concerning him, and for their false and dishonorable views\\nof the providence of God in contending that he never does or can\\npermit trouble, but in cases of wickedness. A sacrifice is demanded\\nof them, and Job is appointed to be their intercessor. Upon the\\naccomplishment of this the severely tried patriarch is restored to\\nhis former state of enjoyment, and his prosperity is in every respect\\ndoubled.", "height": "3484", "width": "2212", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0097.jp2"}, "96": {"fulltext": "IX.\\nTHE FAMILY OF ELKANAH.\\nAmidst the scenes of war and violence, of alternate struggle and\\nservitude, unfolded in the Book of Judges, the picture of the pious\\nLevite of Ramah Zophim and his family, is one of peculiar beauty.\\nThe wonderful deeds of the most extraordinary among the Jewish\\nheroes, Samson, were ringing in the ears of the people the feeble\\nand irresolute Eli was judge and high-priest of Israel, and the sons\\nwhom he so criminally indulged were bringing destruction upon\\nthemselves and wrath upon the nation, when within the sacred\\nprecincts of the tabernacle was growing up the devoted child, the\\nchosen prophet, the pious governor, whose administration was to\\nrestore dignity and peace to his country. Elkanah was a peaceable\\ncitizen of a town in Mount Ephraim, and a devout servant of\\nJehovah, as appears from the regularity with which he went up, at\\nstated times, to worship and offer sacrifices. The ark and tabernacle\\nwere at Shiloh in the territory of Ephraim, the most powerful and\\nleast exposed of the provinces and thither to the one place and the\\none altar consecrated by the presence of Divinity, was the true\\nIsraelite bound to repair, whatever disorder might prevail in the\\nceremonies, or however unworthy might be the priests who minis-\\ntered in the holy ordinances. The character of this exemplary\\ncitizen is finely drawn by a few touches in the Bible. He was\\ndevotedly attached to Hannah, who seems to have been his first\\nwife. For Peninnah, the mother of his children, he had due\\nrespect, and showed it in giving to her and the children the\\ncustomary portions at the appointed peace-offerings, on which it was\\nusual for the offerer to feast with his family. To Hannah, the\\nbeloved, he rendered more than the wonted attention a eircum-\\n86", "height": "3520", "width": "2284", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0098.jp2"}, "97": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ELKANAH. 8*7\\nstance which did not escape the jealous observation of her rival.\\nThe patience and kindness with which Elkanah bears the arrogance\\nand malevolence of Peninnah, exhibited in a way which must have\\nwounded him most severely, since it embittered the life of one\\ndearer than himself the tenderness with which he remonstrates\\nwith Hannah upon her indulgence of a grief that disturbed their\\nproper performance of religious ceremonies, assuring her of the\\nunchangeable affection which ought to have consoled her for all\\ndisappointments and the fidelity with which he aids her to fulfil her\\npledge to the Lord, mark him as a faithful husband and father, as\\nwell as a true-hearted Hebrew. We know not the motives with\\nwhich he had married Peninnah probably the desire of offspring,\\nas in Abraham s case, had influenced him but like him he had\\nreason to repent a step involving injury to his own peace, and\\nrendering his house, when his family was assembled, the scene of\\ndiscord and suffering. On every occasion, and particularly when\\nthey went up to Shiloh, to join in the solemn acts enjoined by their\\nreligious law the fortunate mother of sons and daughters, proud\\nof her fertility, and rejoicing that her rival was denied the blessing\\nof children, taunted and provoked Hannah. Peninnah is emphati-\\ncally called her adversary, for her conduct was prompted by the\\nmost cruel malevolence, and might have generated not only dis-\\ncontent, but envy and vindictive resentment in the mind of the\\ngentle being so wantonly insulted. But Hannah s nature, it seems,\\nwas not one ready to apprehend and resent injury. She gave no\\nreply to the taunts hurled against her, even at times when respect\\nfor the ordinances of the sanctuary should have checked a vaunting\\nor insclent spirit she uttered no murmur against the Providence\\nwhich seemed to have cut her off from the hope of being a mother\\nin Israel but she felt the reproach intensely and keenly, and poured\\nout her sorrow in tears, being unable to eat of the sacrifices, or\\nfearing to partake of them in a spirit of mournfulness. Hannah\\ndoes not appear to have possessed any of the impatient temper", "height": "3484", "width": "2212", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0099.jp2"}, "98": {"fulltext": "88 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nmanifested by Rachel under a similar affliction. She had strong\\nfeelings, but they were controlled by her respect for Elkanah s\\nauthority, and by her religious faith. On the occasion mentioned\\nparticularly, the insolence of her adversary, and the anguish caused\\nby her provoking language, seem to have reached their climax.\\nThen it was that Elkanah rebuked her gently, for the immoderate\\ngrief which was an offence to God, as well as unkindness to him.\\nHannah answered not, but rose up after the solemn feast her soul\\nwas full of bitterness, her anguish no longer repressible and she\\nobeyed the native tendency of the spirit to pour out its woe to the\\nAlmighty Hearer of prayer. Let the waters of affliction overwhelm\\nthe soul deep calling unto deep let earthly help and hope dis-\\nappear and its cry ascends instinctively to heaven. Happy those\\nwho, like Hannah, can pray in faith as well as fervently, and keep\\nthe vow made in the day of trouble\\nHannah stood within the tabernacle, and the pent-up sorrow of\\nher bosom found vent first in a flood of tears, and then in earnest\\nsupplication before the Lord. She vowed a vow, that if a son were\\ngranted her, he should be consecrated to God, and devote all the\\ndays of his life only to His service. Often might blessings importu-\\nnately craved be found curses in reality, and the parent s heart be\\nwrung by the ingratitude or tlie unworthiness of the child received\\nas the dearest boon of Heaven. She who prayed now for a son, would\\nsecure his welfare both in this world and the next, as well as\\ntestify her gratitude for the gift, by dedicating him to the Lord. As she\\nstood and prayed her whole heart absorbed in the earnestness of her\\npetition her lips moving, but with no audible voice unmindful or\\nunconscious of observation, there was one who looked upon and\\ncondemned her. The high-priest Eli, seated by the post in the\\ntemple or tabernacle, had marked her entrance and her movements,\\nand mistaking the evidence of strong emotion, taxed her with\\ndrunkenness. Here again are shown the mildness and humility of\\nHannah, in the courteous and respectful manner in which she", "height": "3520", "width": "2276", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0100.jp2"}, "99": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ELKANAH. 89\\nreplied, evincing no anger at the injurious imputation cast upon her.\\nIt was nothing strange, perhaps, in those days, when the temple\\nof the Most High was profaned by licentious excess, when the very\\npriests lorded it over God s heritage, and desecrated his sacrifice\\nwith abominations, for the inebriate to venture into the sanctuary\\nnor had the reproof of the high-priest, in most cases, much effect.\\nHannah not only testified no indignation, but in declaring her\\ninnocence and the sorrow that had brouo-ht her thither an humble\\nsupplicant, did not explain the cause of her distress. It lay between\\nher and her Maker in Him alone she trusted for relief, and so she\\nsought no human sympathy nor intervention in making known her\\ncomplaint to the God of Israel. Eli acknowledged his mistake, and\\nwithout knowing what had been her petition, added his blessing\\nand prayer that it might be granted.\\nHaving poured out her soul before the Lord, Hannah goes\\nher way, no longer oppressed with sadness, and able, with a\\ncheerful countenance, to bear her part in the stated worship. The\\nson she asked is given, and she calls him by a name that perpetuates\\nher memoiy of the obligation. She does not go up to the yearly\\nsacrifice till the time comes when she may perform her vow, and\\ngive him up finally to the sanctuary. Elkanah approves her\\ndetermination. Do, he says, what seemeth thee good only\\nthe Lord establish his word. His zeal for the honor of Jehovah,\\nand confidence that He would do all things well, rendered him\\nwilling to yield up his own judgment even in disposing of his child.\\nHow signally was the devotion rewarded\\nA scene of deep interest and pathos is presented in the final\\nrestitution of the gift or loan for which Hannah had prayed in the\\nsanctuary. Leading her boy, and having with her the offerings for\\nsacrifice and thank-offering customary for those who came to pay a\\ntribute of gratitude and joy, she appears once more in the presence\\nof the high-priest. No longer bowed down -with distress, she is so\\nchanged by the cheerfulness of her countenance and deportment,", "height": "3480", "width": "2212", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0101.jp2"}, "100": {"fulltext": "90 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nthat she is not recognised by Eli. Her heart is overflowing with\\nthankful happiness she remembers not his unkind reproof, but\\ngreeting him eagerly, declares herself the same woman who stood\\nby him praying that she has been made happy by a gracious\\nanswer to her petition, and that she is come to render up God s due,\\nby giving her son to his service. How must the touching piety of\\nthis mother, with the innocence of the child who stood ready to be\\nthus devoted, have struck the soul of Eli so lamentably deficient\\nin his own domestic management so unhappy in the misconduct\\nof his sons It was hard for those affectionate parents to separate\\nthemselves from their only son, in his tender childhood, while his\\npresence was most dear to them, but harder would it have been to\\nsee the working in him of the curse that follows disobedience\\nAgain Hannah prayed but this time not in humiliation and\\nanguish. Then, her voice was not heard, but her prayer struggled\\nupward from her heart now her words are uttered aloud, and her\\nlove and gratitude poured out in the sacred and sublime hymn, at\\nthe close of which is a mysterious prophecy of the greatness of the\\nMessiah. She returns to Ramah with Elkanah, leaving Samuel to\\nminister before the Lord, but continues from year to year to visit\\nhim, and bring him little tokens of her maternal fondness, when she\\ncomes up with Elkanah to attend the sacrifice. She was blessed\\namidst the cares of a numerous family, in watching the growth of\\nthis cherished son in wisdom and piety. Her trust was remembered\\nin the grace which made the child in favor both with the Lord,\\nand also with men.\\nThe child destined after Moses to be the first eminent and\\nacknowledged prophet in Israel, continued to serve in the sanctuary\\nunder the direction of the high-priest. While slumbering at night\\nin the area of the tabernacle, a mysterious voice called him by\\nname the call being repeated so frequently that the aged Eli\\nbecame convinced that some new revelation was to be made. It\\nwas an affecting scene, when, on the morning after the vision, the", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0102.jp2"}, "101": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ELKANAH. 91\\nguileless child stood in the presence of the infirm high-priest, who\\nhad been to him as a father, for whom affectionate respect had\\ngrown with his growth, and adjured by the great name of Jehovah,\\ndelivered the awful message. Strange, that the first words of\\nprophecy from the lips of one so young should be fraught with\\nsuch terror, and stranger still that they should denounce unrelenting\\nvengeance upon the house of the priest who had protected the\\nearly years of Samuel, and hoped, perhaps, to find comfort in him\\nfor the wickedness of those of his own blood\\nThe fame of Samuel extended as he grew, and his word came\\nto all Israel, till he assumed his appointed place as head of the\\nstate. Thus was distinguished honor put upon the piety of his\\nparents, and the wise nurture in which he grew. Elkanah and\\nHannah were blessed, not in his greatness, but in his pre-eminent\\nusefulness.", "height": "3476", "width": "2212", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0103.jp2"}, "102": {"fulltext": "X.\\nELI AND HIS FAMILY.\\nThe condition of the Hebrew nation at the period of Eli s priest-\\nhood, contributed to increase the weight of priestly influence and\\npower. The frontier, harassed by enemies, to oppose whom a con-\\ntinual struggle was necessary the central territory of Ephraim\\nbecame the most powerful province among the tribes. The taber-\\nnacle and ark the strength and hope of Israel, as the symbol of\\nthe presence of the Deity were at Shiloh, whither the people went\\nup at stated times to worship that place, therefore, was acknow-\\nledged as the capital, and Eli was invested with civil as well as\\nreligious supremacy, being both judge and high-priest in Israel.\\nHis own character, as an individual, appears to have been upright\\nand blameless he had a knowledge of the attributes of God, and\\nworshipped Him in sincerity he manifested submission, patience,\\nand penitence, when punishment was denounced upon his house;\\nand at the last, when he watched, with a fearful looking for of judg-\\nment when overwhelming ruin was upon him, his apprehensions\\nand his anguish were more for the ark of God than even for his\\ndoomed children. It was in his relations as a father and ruler in\\nhis public capacity, that he was so culpably defective that he was\\njudged worthy of the terrible punishment under which he sank in\\nhis old age.\\nTwo sons had Eli Hophni and Phinehas who also were engaged\\nin the sacerdotal service at Shiloh. They had been brought up to\\nthe sacred office, and probably instructed according to the law but\\nthey had no real acquaintance with the perfections of the Being they\\nprofessed to serve, nor any disposition to honor his ordinances.\\nTheir unjust and illegal exactions from those who came to offer\\n92", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0104.jp2"}, "103": {"fulltext": "ELI AND HIS FAMILY. 93\\nsacrifice, their insolence and tyranny, caused the people who suf-\\nfered from such abuses to abhor the offering of the Lord. Evils\\nyet more scandalous and disgraceful were introduced by them into\\nthe very courts of the tabernacle till the heaven-appointed rites of\\nHebrew worship, thus shamelessly profaned, were in danger of being-\\nassimilated to the corrupt practices of the votaries of Baal, or the\\nBabylonian deities. Such abandoned conduct in men so eminent in\\nofficial position, whose power and influence were doubtless considera-\\nble, could not fail to degrade, in the eyes of the people, the sacred\\nceremonies in which they ministered, and induced so general a\\nneglect of religious observances as tended to bring divine displeasure\\nupon the whole nation. All Israel suffered from the wickedness of\\nthose sons of Belial in high places and times of profligacy, apos-\\ntasy, and idolatry were likely to ensue upon their sacrilegious insults\\nto the institutions of Jehovah. While these atrocious abuses were\\ngoing on, the pleasing interlude described in the foregoing chapter\\ntook place and it is a relief to turn from the sight of the wicked\\npriests to the picture of innocence, faith, and pious confidence and\\ngratitude presented on the other hand. There was doubtless a con-\\ngeniality of disposition between the aged high-priest and the\\nconsecrated child intrusted to his care. Eli addresses him as a son,\\nendeared to him by affection and knowledge of the high destiny in\\nreserve for him and sore indeed must have been the father s heart,\\nwhen he reflected on the contrast between this artless boy and those\\nwho were indeed his sons. The rumor of all they had done to the\\npeople who came to worship at Shiloh, and of the effects of their\\nheinous example, reached the old man s ears, and drew from him a\\nmild reproof for their evil doings. He appealed to them as if they\\nhad possessed consciences, and had been capable of being moved by\\nthe reasons he alleges, to mend their course. Vain expectation its\\nindulgence only proves how ignorant was the father of the depravity\\nof the human heart, and the fearful state of those who are given up\\nto impenitence and condemnation. He executed not upon them the", "height": "3508", "width": "2196", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0105.jp2"}, "104": {"fulltext": "94 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\npunishment their crimes deserved, and which was imperatively-\\ncalled for, to vindicate the honor of the priesthood, and counteract\\nthe tendency of their example he expelled them not from the\\noffice they had profaned, but listened rather to the dictates of\\nparental feeling, which prompted to a light passing over of their\\noffences, than to the stern requirement of his duty as head of the\\nchurch and ruler of the people. His rebuke, so inadequate in\\nseverity, had no effect, for they had spurned the mercy of God, and\\nwere marked out as victims to his justice.\\nThe father, culpable in his partiality, forbore to repress wickedness\\nby due punishment the righteous Judge therefore pronounces sen-\\ntence upon him as involved in the guilt. A messenger extraordi-\\nnary, bearing a direct message from the Lord of hosts, appears in\\nthe presence of the high-priest, whose peculiar province it was to\\nconsult the divine oracle with the sacred breastplate of judgment.\\nFearlessly he delivers the words committed to him the terrible\\nthreatening of vengeance from which there was no deliverance. Thou\\nhonorest thy sons above me, was the charge against Eli he had thus\\nconnived at, and virtually encouraged their crimes, and was to be chief\\nin bearing the punishment. He had forgotten the favor conferred\\non the house of Aaron and his own family, and was now to see the\\ncalamity of the habitation of God, with the transfer of the priest-\\nhood to another line, and the degradation and misery of his\\ndescendants. The death of the wicked priests, his sons, was to be\\nbut a sign of the evil to come.\\nOnce more, by the mouth of the child Samuel, came the message\\nof vengeance to Eli. It is likely he looked to this youthful servant\\nof God, growing up under his care, for consolation amidst the heavy\\nafflictions which had bowed him down more than the weight of\\nyears. He loved the boy, and was affectionately reverenced by him.\\nThey had taken sweet counsel together in the shadow of the sanc-\\ntuary and the soul of the feeble old man had been refreshed in the\\ncompanionship of innocence pure from all contamination of the", "height": "3520", "width": "2224", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0106.jp2"}, "105": {"fulltext": "EI.I AND HIS FAMILY. 95\\nworld. How agonizing must his consciousness have been, when,\\nfrom the lips of this child, reluctant to speak of the vision, but\\nsolemnly charged to hide nothing from him of all that had been\\nrevealed, he heard the fearful denunciation, ere long to be more\\nfearfully executed than even he had apprehended There was no\\nroom for mistrust or suspicion of harshness or exaggeration, in the\\nmessenger there was nothing equivocal in the message itself. I\\nwill judge his house for ever, for the iniquity which he knoweth\\nbecause his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not,\\nwere words whose import could not be misunderstood. The meek\\nreply of Eli to the communication showed his acquiescence in the\\nterrible sentence. He presumed not to remonstrate, or entreat\\nmercy but, assured that God would do right, and that his part was\\nto submit in humility to the merited chastisement, calmly expressed\\nthat submission, doubtless in humble trust that mercy would be\\nextended to him as a man, in the midst of temporal judgments.\\nThe time came for the destruction which had been foretold. The\\npeople of Israel were at Avar again with the Philistines. The time\\nis supposed by some to have been shortly after the remarkable death\\nof Samson and if so, it might be that the Hebrews, who seem to\\nhave been the party to commence hostilities, were encouraged by\\nthe slaughter of the Philistine chiefs in the fall of the temple at\\nGaza, into efforts to throw, off the oppressive yoke by a vigorous\\nattack upon their enemies. The people went forth to battle with\\nlarge hopes of success and marching to Aphek, where the foe was\\nencamped, the encounter took place there between the rival armies.\\nIt resulted in the total defeat of the men of Israel, while four\\nthousand were left dead upon the field. There was consternation in\\nthe camp when the discomfited forces returned and the question as\\nto what caused the day s disaster was rife among them. The\\nelders were ready to propose an expedient which they imagined\\nwould secure them future triumph. The wonders wrought in for-\\nmer days, when the ark, the symbol of God s presence, was borne", "height": "3500", "width": "2180", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0107.jp2"}, "106": {"fulltext": "96 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nin front of the ranks, when the waters of Jordan were divided, and\\nthe walls of Jericho fell down before it, were vivid in their recollec-\\ntion they forgot that no divine command authorized them now to\\nexpect similar miracles, and anticipated the terror and flight of their\\nenemies before the sacred emblem. They sent to Shiloh for the\\nark of the covenant. It may be conjectured with what feelings the\\nblind old man, Eli, knew of the removal of the ark from its place\\nin the Holy of holies, to be carried into the army under the care of\\nhis guilty sons. Heavily must the prophecy have weighed upon\\nhis heart, mingled with fearful apprehensions for the fate of that on\\nwhich hung the fate of the nation and more the worship of the\\ntrue God upon earth. Its arrival in the camp is welcomed with a\\nshout from the entire army, with which the earth rang. The\\nshout is heard in the enemy s camp the Philistine leaders, in sur-\\nprise, inquire the meaning of the strange burst of exultation, and\\nlearn that the ark is with the Hebrews. Though flushed with vic-\\ntory, they are seized with a sudden terror at the tidings. Woe\\nunto us they cry, for they have a hereditary dread of the mighty and\\nmysterious Deity who has heretofore proved invincible whose pre-\\nsence and power brought such signal defeat on the Egyptians and the\\nCanaanites. But their alarm is speedily overcome by strong reso-\\nlution to sustain their character for valor, and fight to the death for\\ntheir liberties. The final encounter takes place the Philistines\\nfight with desperate resolution, determined not to be enslaved by\\nthe people who had groaned under their yoke the Hebrews with\\nenergy, and assurance of success but the day is against them.\\nThe Philistines gain a complete victory thirty thousand of Israel\\nare left dead on the field, and the survivors are scattered in every\\ndirection, fleeing every man to his tent. The wicked priests who\\nbore the ark, proudly esteeming themselves the deliverers of the\\npeople, are slain; and, worst calamity of all the ark itself has\\nfallen into the ands of the uncircumcised enemy. What a\\ntriumph for the conqueror what a loss for the nation abandoned of", "height": "3520", "width": "2248", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0108.jp2"}, "107": {"fulltext": "ELI AND HIS FAMILY. 97\\ntheir God and doomed, as it seemed, to hopeless servitude I No\\nsuch terrible disaster had ever before happened. A fugitive from\\nthe army, with his clothes rent, and dust upon his head, ran to\\nShiloh, to bear the appalling intelligence. The aged high-priest has\\ngone forth, and sits by the wayside, near the gate, waiting for news\\nof the battle his heart trembling for the ark of God. As the\\nmessenger rushes in and spreads his disastrous news, a cry of wild\\ngrief and horror runs through the city. Eli hears the tumultuous\\nlamentation, and eagerly inquires what is the cause. He knows\\nthat his sons have perished that Israel s army is defeated but\\nwhat woe more terrible than defeat and slaughter has fallen on the\\nland to plunge all into mourning The ark of God is taken\\nWith those words the measure of anguish for the old man is com-\\nplete. He had bowed himself to the judgments predicted but this\\ndishonor to his religion, this loss of that which was the life as well as\\nthe glory of the nation, this final departure, as he might have deemed\\nit, of Jehovah from the place chosen for his abode and all in con-\\nsequence of his own criminal weakness and negligence, has crushed\\nhim to the earth. Too much overcome to utter a word of reply or\\ncomment, he swooned, and fell backward from his seat his neck\\nbrake, and he died.\\nNothing is said previously of the wives of the sons of Eli but\\nthe incident recorded of the wife of Phinehas shows the strength\\nof her reverence for the national religion and the sacred ordinances.\\nShe pays no regard to the intelligence that she has borne a son\\nshe heeds not the approach of death even grief for her dead hus-\\nband and father-in-law seems lost in a deeper emotion. Her dying\\nlips repeat the announcement The ark of God is taken and\\nshe only notices her child to bestow the name commemorative of the\\nevent w Ichabod the glory is departed from Israel.\\nHow impressive and full of instruction is the contrast presented\\nin the history of the two families, thus strangely associated together,\\nthough so different in character The obscure citizen, persevering", "height": "3508", "width": "2172", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0109.jp2"}, "108": {"fulltext": "98 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nin his attendance on the religions services, steadfast in redeeming*\\nthe vows by which his child was devoted, even though he leaves\\nhim exposed to the contagion of evil example, has his reward in the\\npiety and usefulness of the great prophet and ruler of Israel the\\njudge and high-priest sinks under the weight of the calamities his\\nown sin has brought on his country through the iniquity of his sons.\\nIn the one instance we see great good, in the other great evil to the\\nstate, wrought by the due fulfilment, or the neglect of the funda-\\nmental principle in the duty of a parent. The regard of Elkanah\\nand Hannah for the honor of God the ruling motive of their con-\\nduct cements the family union, and exercises a conservative\\ninfluence over the children Eli s weak preference of the pleasure\\nof his sons to the stern performance of his duty as priest of the\\nMost High, not only involves him and them in ruin, but brings un-\\nprecedented disgrace on their land and their faith. Pages might be\\nwritten upon the lesson but we leave it to the reader s reflection.", "height": "3516", "width": "2232", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0110.jp2"}, "109": {"fulltext": "XI.\\nTHE FAMILY OF NAOMI.\\nSo many dissertations have been written on the character and\\nromantic history of Ruth, that a repetition of the familiar narrative,\\nor another attempt to set forth the beauties of the Scriptural\\ndelineation, would be superfluous. We shall dwell upon it a\\nmoment, however, for the sake of its beautiful and touching\\nexhibition of affection in the family relations.\\nThere was something peculiar in the love of Ruth for her mother-\\nin-law. She, as well as Orpah, had parents of her own in Moab\\nand doubtless the promptings of natural affection pleaded in her\\nheart, when she was on the point of leaving them and the country\\nof her birth for ever. Both the daughters-in-law had lived with\\nNaomi till habit had cemented and strengthened the ties of relation-\\nship both loved her for her amiable qualities, and deemed their\\ninterests so blended with hers that they intended returning with her\\ninto the land of her people. Both had doubtless been instructed by\\nher in the principles of her religion. How was it, then, that when\\nOrpah s resolution failed before the prospect of widowhood and\\ndestitution in a strange country so that she yielded to Naomi s\\npersuasion to turn back Ruth clung to her the more closely,\\nrefusing to be separated from her, save by death\\nIt was the religious faith of the Hebrews which Ruth embraced, in\\ncleaving to her mother-in-law. Her own family and the friends of\\nher youth were dear to her, but she had renounced the gods of her\\npeople, and henceforth the most lasting bond of sympathy was\\nbroken. Young as she was, and beautiful, and respected for a\\nblameless life, and fair as might have been her prospects at home,\\nshe could not dwell there in peace, nor find satisfaction for the\\n99", "height": "3504", "width": "2196", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0111.jp2"}, "110": {"fulltext": "100 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nhigher cravings of the soul. She was firm, therefore, in relinquish-\\ning every expectation of worldly advantage, and venturing all\\nconsequences, to trust under the wings of the Lord God of Israel.\\nThy God shall be my God, is the soul of her affection, and the\\ncrowning of her hopes. She is willing to undergo penury and\\nhardship to such a lot she looks forward, and is prepared to meet\\nit but she will not let go the bright hope of a future life which she\\nhas linked with her trustful love for the being who is to be hence-\\nforth her only earthly friend. Where thou diest I will die, and\\nthere will I be buried, expresses more than the passionate devotion\\nof her heart to the object of its cares. It shows the extending of the\\nidea of union beyond the associations of mortal life, the expansion\\nof affection into the range it can only reach when allied to religion.\\nThe young Moabitess will have her grave in the land of Israel,\\nbecause it is the country of Jehovah s people and near to hers who\\nhas been her teacher in the belief she has embraced for life and\\ndeath. She attests the sincerity of her profession by a solemn\\nappeal to the Lord in whom she trusted.\\nWe see also here the disinterestedness of Naomi. It does not\\nappear that a long time had elapsed after the death of her sons,\\nbefore she formed the resolution of returning to the land of Judah\\non the contrary there is reason to believe that her bereavement was\\nrecent. Deprived of the stay on which she had leaned, poor,\\nafflicted, and aged, about to taste one of the most painful of all\\nhumiliations in returning destitute among those who had seen her\\ndays of affluence, the company of her daughters-in-law was her only\\nand sweetest solace. She bears testimony to their dutiful attention\\nto her in the blessing she invokes at parting, The Lord deal kindly\\nwith you, as ye have dealt with the dead, and with me. But she\\nwill not ask or receive from them so great a sacrifice as that they\\nshould renounce home and friends, and go into exile for her sake.\\nFor them many years of enjoyment might remain, they might form\\nother ties, and forget, each in her happy home circle, the widow-", "height": "3544", "width": "2248", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0112.jp2"}, "111": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF NAOMI. 101\\nhood of her youth. She had no inducement to offer them, for she\\ncould see only trial and distress in the dreary future this side the\\ngrave. Scarce a situation in life can be imagined more desolate\\nthan hers and her affectionate heart chooses rather to bear the\\nburden alone, than to suffer any part of it to fall on those so dear to\\nher. They have done their duty by her she can no longer afford\\nthem protection, and she urges their return to their kindred, com-\\nmending them to God with prayers and blessings.\\nNo more touching scene can be depicted by the imagination, than\\nthe parting between the three thus endeared by mutual kindness,\\nand by having rejoiced and mourned together. Naomi s farewell\\nwish, The Lord grant you that ye may find rest, each in the house\\nof her husband, shows her conviction that the dark days of sorrow\\nwould soon be past for them, with her knowledge of what is craved\\nby the trustful nature of woman. She could not blight the\\npromise of their young life by suffering them to yield to the\\naffectionate impulse of the moment. Thus she kindly, but firmly\\nbids them leave her to pursue her way alone, giving reasons\\nfor the necessity of their separation, and grieving for their\\nsakes that the hand of the Lord is gone out so heavily against her.\\nOrpah s resolution gave way, for her attachment to her mother-in-\\nlaw, though sincere, was not strengthened by piety, and could not\\nwithstand the trial. She bade her a sorrowing farewell, and went\\nback unto her people, and unto her gods. How was the better\\npart chosen by the faithful Ruth Her steadfast determination,\\nand its noble expression, silenced the remonstrances of her mother-\\nin-law, and the two went their way to Bethlehem.\\nAll the city, it was said, was moved about them for the\\nsight of Naomi in her reverse of fortune, poor and unattended, save\\nby her kind companion, returning desolate and heart-stricken to the\\nplace where her youthful and happy years were passed, greatly sur-\\nprised those who had known her before she went forth. In bitter-\\nness of heart she disclaimed her ancient name as unsuited to her", "height": "3508", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0113.jp2"}, "112": {"fulltext": "102 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\npresent condition. Why call ye me Naomi, seeing the Lord has\\ntestified against me, and the Almighty hath afflicted me This\\noutbreak of murmuring, extorted by sorrow, soon gave place to\\nthankfulness.\\nThe pious conduct of Ruth towards her mother-in-law, and her\\nchoice of the religion of Israel, did not escape the knowledge of the\\ninhabitants of Bethlehem. Doubtless it was a theme of much con-\\nversation among them, and many above her in station invoked a\\nblessing on the true-hearted stranger, who had given so affecting an\\nevidence of her wish to share in their spiritual privileges. Boaz\\nassured her that her story was well known to him and he appears\\nto have heard of her before he inquired concerning the stranger\\ndamsel of his servant that was set over the reapers. The example\\nwas in truth a singular and picturesque one, that one so young and\\nlovely should be influenced by her belief in the true God, to forsake\\nhome and parents, and come among a people she knew not, submit-\\nting to privation and labor, and earning by her industry a main-\\ntenance for herself and her relative. \u00e2\u0080\u00a2It was not wonderful that\\nmany should say with Boaz The Lord recompense thy work for\\nseldom does conduct so disinterested fail to draw down a blessing,\\neven in this world.\\nThe kindness of heart, dignity, and piety of Boaz are strikingly\\nshown in the narrative in the second chapter. Although a, man of\\nlarge possessions, he gave his personal superintendence to the reap-\\ning of his field, and partook of their simple fare. His pious saluta-\\ntion to the laborers in his employ, with their answer so full of\\nrespect and affection, is characteristic of him as well as of the\\ncustom of the time, and illustrates the influence of genuine religion\\nin maintaining harmony and good feeling between persons of dif-\\nferent station. Were such the relations always between superiors\\nand inferiors, how altered would be the aspect of the world\\nThe beauty of Ruth, and her foreign appearance, probably, first\\narrested the attention of Boaz and when, on inquiring about her", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0114.jp2"}, "113": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF NAOMI. 103\\nhe learned she was the Moabitish damsel of whom he had heard,\\nhis humanity was strongly interested for her. Addressing her with\\nthe kindness of a father, he gave her a hospitable invitation to\\nremain in his field, assuring her she should meet with no hindrance,\\nbut a cordial welcome as often as she chose to come. Then he\\nsecretly charged his young men to treat her with peculiar respect\\nand liberality, as a privileged person, and even to let fall handfuls on\\npurpose for her. In this direction he had respect to the law given\\nby Moses, forbidding to reap wholly the corners of the field, or to\\ngather the gleanings of the harvest, but commanding to leave them\\nfor the poor and the stranger. When Ruth with great humility\\nacknowledged the favor, and asked why she, a stranger, was noticed\\nin so friendly a manner, he replied by calling to mind what she had\\ndone the rumor of which had come to his ears. His upright soul\\nwas pleased by such an exhibition of modest virtue, and he honored\\nit not only by kind deeds, but by wishing her a full reward irom\\nthe Lord God of Israel. He had shown good will to Iris deceased\\nkinsman, Elimelech, before his removal to the land of Moab, as is\\nevident from the acknowledgment of Naomi in the twentieth verse\\nand his disposition was to continue the kindness to his family, now\\nmore than ever in need of assistance. In all this he seems to have\\nbeen actuated by motives of purest benevolence, in which no selfish\\naffection was mino-led. He saw in Ruth a destitute strano-er, whose\\nmerits deserved, particularly at the hands of a kinsman of her hus-\\nband, the succor she needed, while she, on her part, looked on him\\nas one far superior in station to herself.\\nConsistent with the delineation so far, appears the character of\\nBoaz, when the legal claim upon him was asserted by the fair Moa-\\nbitess, at Naomi s instigation. The custom of the Hebrews required\\nof a near relation the duty of a brother, of marrying the childless\\nwidow when the estate was redeemed. When reminded of this\\nduty, the conduct of Boaz is worthy of all praise. He had expressed\\nno regard for the beautiful foreigner beyond that prompted by", "height": "3484", "width": "2192", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0115.jp2"}, "114": {"fulltext": "104 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nhumanity and hearty approval of her course the disparity in age\\nas well as station tended to remove her from his thoughts yet he\\ncould not be insensible to the preference implied in the claim, to\\nhimself as well as the family of the dead. He evidently imputed\\nher conduct to no interested motives, but solely to affection for her\\nmother-in-law, respect for the house of Eliinelech, and for the divine\\nlaw. His first words, therefore, are those of commendation and\\nblessing, and tended to remove any doubts or fears which might\\nhave arisen in her heart. With how much delicacy does he assure\\nher, in acceding to her claim, of the honorable repute she enjoys\\namong all who know her, and her worthiness to be his wife But\\nthe very law she has obeyed in seeking him, interposes an obstacle\\nto their union. There is a kinsman nearer than I. His was a\\nprior right, but it might be supposed that he would waive it, as the\\nwords of Boaz intimate and in this expectation the matter was\\ndismissed until the morrow.\\nThroughout the beautiful story, the character of this honorable\\nman shines with equal lustre. It is apparent, in the transaction at\\nthe city gate, that he is influenced by affection for Ruth but he\\nsuffers not his feelings to stand in the way of his strict discharge of\\nduty. The nearer kinsman is appealed to, and declines to fulfil the\\nobligation resting upon him. It is, therefore, transferred to Boaz,\\nand he formally calls the elders and people to witness that he has\\npurchased the land of the hand of Naomi. Ruth the Moabitess,\\nthe widow of Mahlon, he has also purchased to be his wife. Well\\ndid he deserve the benedictions that followed the public recognition\\nof his right and worthily was his disinterested conduct rewarded,\\nby the bestowal of a wife fitted by all the graceful and lofty quali-\\nties that adorn the female character, to build up his house and\\nrender it famous in Bethlehem. And though he could not know\\nthe real greatness of the line of which he was the founder, nor had\\nintimation of the more than royal majesty of his descendant Ema-\\nnuel, yet he was blessed in the offspring of this auspicious marriage.", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0116.jp2"}, "115": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF NAOMI. 105\\nIt has been remarked that the mingling of foreign with Jewish blood\\nin the ancestors of the Messiah, signified the future union of Gentiles\\nwith the chosen people, in the Christian church.\\nIn each of the individuals of this family we may see admirable\\ntraits, well suited to their several conditions. In Naomi, the resig-\\nnation that tempers sorrow, patience under misfortune, tender sensi-\\nbility, and disinterestedness in Ruth, the most attractive modesty\\nand humility, joined with warm affection, fidelity, and piety in\\nBoaz, generous consideration for others, open truthfulness, and free-\\ndom from all that is sordid or selfish, with steadfast rectitude of\\npurpose, and dignity of deportment, which could spring only from\\nan elevated soul. It is most interesting to observe how these\\nqualities act upon each other with a highly dramatic effect in some\\nof the various situations and how they are enhanced in beauty by\\nthe romantic coloring thrown over them in the delineation of simple\\npastoral life. The introduction of the narrative, between histories\\nfull of stirring political events, adds the interest of contrast to the\\nquiet domestic picture while the evident purpose of its insertion, to\\nrecord information concerning the genealogy of the Saviour, impresses\\nus as we read, and strengthens the effect of the lesson so toucliingly\\nconveyed.", "height": "3492", "width": "2196", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0117.jp2"}, "116": {"fulltext": "XII.\\nTHE FAMILY OF SAUL.\\nIn royal families the ties of relationship seldom bind so closely as\\nin humbler life. The forms of a court and the duties of public station\\ntend to weaken the feeling of mutual dependence, and separate the\\nmembers one from another, while expediency rather than affection\\ntoo often directs the choice which is the root of other relations.\\nThe career of Saul as a monarch arrests the attention of every\\nreader, while his character as a husband and father is touched upon\\nmore slightly. But we may learn something of it from the promi-\\nnent illustrative incidents mentioned in his history.\\nWhen the people of Israel demanded that their form of national\\ngovernment should be changed into a monarchy, desiring to have\\nthen polity like that of other nations, the selection of the sovereign\\nwas made by divine direction. The first appearance of the son of\\nthe Benjamitish chieftain produces in the reader s mind a strong\\nimpression in his favor. He possessed striking advantages of per-\\nson, with external accomplishments valued in that age and country\\nas peculiarly fitting him for eminent station. The modesty with\\nwhich he disclaimed the distinctions offered him by Samuel, and the\\nsurprise he expressed at the first intimation of his high destiny,\\nshow a spirit as yet unsoiled by pride or ambition. When he met\\nthe company of prophets coming down from the high place, wiih\\npsaltery and tabret and pipe and harp, his soul was kindled with\\nlofty thoughts, and he joined with such enthusiasm in their hymns\\nof praise as to excite the wonder of all who knew him previously,\\nand could not account for the sudden change. Yet was this religious\\nardor no fruit of undue exultation in the prospect of the greatness\\nthat awaited him for when the chant was over, and his kinsman\\n10G", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0118.jp2"}, "117": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF SAUL. 107\\nquestioned him concerning all the prophet had said, he told him\\nnothing of the private though solemn anointing, nor of the king-\\ndom soon to be his own. Herein was prudence and discretion\\nawaiting the event of what Providence would bring to pass, and\\nventuring no interference by acting on the suggestions of his own\\nwisdom. He prevented thus the ostentation or the envy of his\\nkindred, and the opposition of factious spirits, who might have\\nbusied themselves before the formal designation of the king, by\\nstirring up the minds of the people to discontent. The assembly\\nconvened at Mizpeh, by Samuel s direction, from all the tribes of\\nIsrael, for the purpose of choosing a monarch, by appeal to God s\\ndecision in the way appointed received the one on whom the lot\\nfell, and answered with enthusiastic shouts the prophet s question\\nSee ye him whom the Lord hath chosen, that there is none like\\nhim among the people So far Saul appears as distinguished by\\na commendable humility of spirit as by superior personal advantages.\\nHe manifested moreover no impatience to assume the insignia of\\nsovereignty, but retired quietly to his home, leaving the administra-\\ntion of state affairs in the hands that had so long ably held the\\nreins. He heard the murmurs of men disposed to reject his\\nauthority, w T ho contemptuously refused the customary tokens of\\nacknowledgment but he prudently refrained from resenting their\\ninsolence, holding his peace, that civil discords might not disturb the\\nbeginning of the new state of things, and waiting God s own time\\nfor action.\\nThe time came, and he was proved equal to the emergency. The\\nmonarch of the Ammonites, who had invaded the country bordering\\nhis territory, besieged the town of Jabesh Gilead, and demanded of\\nthe inhabitants, who offered to capitulate, that they should submit\\nto lose their right eyes, as a mark of subjection and disgrace to the\\nHebrew nation. Even the respite of a few days, granted them to\\nentreat succor of their brethren, w r as probably designed to bring\\nseverer reproach upon all Israel. The news of their desperate con-", "height": "3496", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0119.jp2"}, "118": {"fulltext": "108 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\ndition was brought to Gibeah, and filled the inhabitants with grief\\nand consternation. The newly elected king, like the Roman dicta-\\ntor, had returned to his field and his herd. Coming homeward from\\nhis rural occupations, he heard the voice of bitter lamentation,\\ninquired the cause, and with the tidings the Spirit of God came\\nupon him. Fired with generous indignation, the herdsman was\\nready to assume regal authority, and become the leader of armies.\\nHe hewed a yoke of oxen in pieces, and sending the sign, like the\\nburning cross of the Highlanders, through all the coasts of Israel,\\nsummoned the tribes under threatening in case of disobedience, to\\nfollow him and Samuel to battle. The army mustered, was led\\nagainst the Ammonites, the enemy defeated and scattered, and the\\nvictory was signalized by the refusal of Saul to execute vengeance,\\neven at the people s request, on the disaffected persons who had\\nstriven against his elevation. This magnanimity was in keeping\\nwith the faith which ascribed the glory of his success to the Lord,\\nand both promised the happiest results in the continuance of a reign\\nwhich had opened so auspiciously.\\nThe picture darkens as we follow his career. At Gilgal, when the\\nimmense army of the Philistines had swept the country, and the\\nterrified Hebrews were scattered, hiding themselves in caves and\\nwoods and rocks, a remnant followed their king in mortal fear of\\nthe invader, we see him usurping the priestly function, and offering\\nsacrifice in violation of God s commandment, because the coming of\\nSamuel was delayed. For this disobedience, the sentence was\\npassed which excluded his line from the kingdom. The same\\nimpatient and presumptuous spirit was shown after the daring\\nexploit of his gallant son, by which he was delivered from his\\ncritical situation at Gibeah. The young man, accompanied by his\\narmor-bearer, climbed a rock one of the enemy s outposts, killed\\ntwenty men, and threw such confusion into the camp, aided by the\\nterrors of an earthquake, that the panic-stricken men fell upon and\\nslew one another. The complete victory of the Israelites which", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0120.jp2"}, "119": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF SAUL. 109\\nensued was marred by the rash adjuration of Saul, forbidding the\\nsoldiers to taste food during the day, and adding to his prohibition\\nthe solemn curse which devoted the enemies of God to destruction.\\nWhen it was found that Jonathan had ignorantly transgressed, the\\nking was ready to sacrifice his victorious son, unmindful of his own\\nsin in thus troubling the land and paralysing efforts for its\\ndeliverance. In the expedition against Amalek he again trans-\\ngressed the special command laid upon him, reserving the spoil, and\\nsparing the life of the monarch and when taxed by Samuel with\\ndisobedience, refused to acknowledge his fault, arrogantly claiming\\nthe merit of having performed all his duty. Even when compelled,\\nby fear of a speedy execution of the sentence denounced against\\nhim, to own his sin and entreat the prophet s stay, he disingenuously\\nlaid the blame to the people s charge, and manifested less sorrow at\\nhaving offended God, than dread of forfeiting his own power and\\ndignity. In how humiliating a light appears the king returning\\nladen with the spoils of victory, as he lays hold on the prophet s\\nmantle to detain him, and entreats him for the sake of appearances\\nbefore the elders and his people, not to withhold his presence from\\nhis religious service. The heart is unhumbled, but the monarch\\ntrembles for his state and sovereignty. What marvel that Samuel,\\ndisheartened at these repeated acts of rebellion, and forced to give up\\nthe hopes he had founded on his early promise, should leave him to\\nreturn no more, and mourn for him, rejected from reigning over Israel\\nSaul was of a spirit too impatient, and too much governed by\\ncaprice, to show justice and kindness in his domestic relations. Of\\nhis wife nothing is said but that she was Ahinoam the daughter of\\nAhimaaz. His sons were Jonathan, Ishui, elsewhere called Abina-\\ndab, and Melchishua, besides Ishbosheth, called Eshbaal; his\\ndaughters Merab and Michal. Not the closest ties of relationship,\\nnor the most signal obligations, could protect from the effects of his\\ncapricious humor. The youth whose exquisite skill on the harp had\\ncharmed him into peace during the paroxysms of his madness, who", "height": "3496", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0121.jp2"}, "120": {"fulltext": "110 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nhad taken away the reproach from Israel, and slain the champion of\\nthe Philistines, became the object of his jealous hate when the\\nwomen extolled his fame in their triumphant songs. The elder\\ndaughter he had promised to David as a reward for his valor, was\\ngiven to another, when the time came for the nuptials. The love\\nof the younger daughter was made a snare, that the hand of the\\nPhilistines might be against him. When Jonathan pleaded for\\nDavid, calling to mind his honorable sendees, Saul was ready to\\nswear that his life should be sacred but speedily afterwards attempt-\\ned to kill him with his own hand, while he played the harp in his\\npresence. Sunk by degrees from the brave warrior into the moody\\ntyrant, the slave of his intractable passions, forsaken of God, and\\ngrovelling beneath the shadow of his darkened spirit, Saul filled\\nup the measure of his crimes. The whole range of Scripture\\nhistory offers no more melancholy portraiture. The climax of his\\njealousy and bitterness seems to be reached when he charges\\nhis own son, the noble Jonathan, with having conspired with\\nDavid against him, and follows up the accusation by the murder\\nof the priests. The dark scene preceding the close of his life,\\nwhen the bold warrior who had so many times fronted the\\nenemy trembled at their array, and despairing of an answer from the\\noffended deity, sought insight into futurity by aid of necromancy,\\nexhibits most mournfully the desperation and gloom of his spirit,\\nand the depth of degradation into which he had fallen.\\nOn the other hand, no character in history or romance appears in\\na light more beautiful than that of Jonathan. All noble and\\namiable qualities belonging to the son, the friend, the hero, or the\\nman, are united in him, and shine more brightly from the contrasted\\ngloom. The gallant exploit which first brings him to notice, his\\nalmost single-handed attack on the garrison of the Philistines,\\ndisplays his faith and piety as well as his courage for he ventures\\nnot on the hazardous enterprise till assured of success by a sign from\\nheaven. But his friendship for David, so full of romantic interest,", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0122.jp2"}, "121": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF SAUL. Ill\\nforms an incident which more than any other relieves the darkness\\nof his father s history.\\nIn all true friendship exists an element of self-sacrifice and this\\nis remarkable in that of Jonathan for David. He first sees the\\nyouthful hero under circumstances that might have awakened less\\namiable feelino-s in an ordinary mind. Fresh from the slaughter of\\nGoliath, the shepherd s son was an object of attention and admiration\\nto all Israel. He stood before the King with the trophy of victory\\nin his hand of a victory which had achieved such important con-\\nsequences, presented by Saul s general, who, though ignorant of his\\nparentage, was ready to bear testimony to his heroic conduct\\nModestly, yet with suitable dignity, David answered the monarch s\\nQuestions, while the gentleness and uprightness of his soul were well\\nrepresented in his fair and graceful exterior. It was then that the\\nnoble spirit of the prince was instantaneously and irresistibly attracted\\nby the perception of congenial qualities. He felt no jealousy of\\nmilitary glory. His affection sprang up suddenly, but was not the\\nless strong and enduring. No language can be more expressive and\\nappropriate than that of Scripture, the soul of Jonathan was knit\\nwith the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul.\\nThe prince was first to love it is generally the case that the supe-\\nrior is first in the bestowal of the unbought priceless gift of affection.\\nAn Italian writer considers inequality in fortune or endowments a\\ngreat strengthener of friendship, if not absolutely essential to its ex-\\nistence. Taking this view, if one would imagine a situation most\\nfavorable for the birth and growth of human love, it would be one\\nlike that of Jonathan and David where the disparity between the\\ntwo in point of external advantages and worldly position was so\\nmarked and the real difference so great in powers not yet called\\ninto action. Conscious as Jonathan must have been of a mysterious\\nsuperiority in the young stranger, before which his spirit instinctively\\nbowed itself, he could not but know that in the proffer of his friend-\\nship he occupied the position of one bestowing, not receiving favor.", "height": "3496", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0123.jp2"}, "122": {"fulltext": "112 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nDavid, too, must have esteemed himself honored in the covenant\\nformed with him by one so high in rank, so distinguished by military\\nrenown, and endeared to the people. But the generous devotion of\\nJonathan knew no restraint he stripped off his own princely robe,\\nand gave it to the youth, with his girdle, and bow, and sword, an\\nimpulsive expression of the love that could withhold nothing. The\\naffection of David was the offspring of gratitude, for he could make\\nno return to the marks of favor received.\\nIt was not long before the fidelity thus solemnly pledged was put\\nto the test. The jealousy rankling in the king s distempered mind\\ncreated the most implacable enmity towards David, which at length\\nbroke forth in the avowed purpose of taking his life. Aware that\\nthe stripling was nominated to be his successor, to the exclusion of\\nhis own sons, he appealed to Jonathan to aid him in removing so\\nformidable a rival, and laid the same command on all his servants.\\nBut no motives of ambition could influence so pure and lofty a\\nspirit. Jonathan lost no time in warning his friend of danger, and\\npleaded for him with such calm, earnest, and persuasive eloquence,\\nthat malignity itself was for the time disarmed, and he procured a\\nreconciliation between Saul and David. Judging his father by his\\nown frank and honorable nature, he esteemed his friend safe thence-\\nforward but when convinced that the king s hostility was as deadly\\nas ever, he devoted himself wholly to David s service. In the large-\\nness of his love he promised to do everything to sacrifice everything\\nfor him. Whatsoever thy soul desireth, I will even do it for thee.\\nNo consideration could outweigh that of David s interests he recog-\\nnised in him the chosen of Heaven, and willingly relinquished his\\nown claims to the kingdom. His religious faith perceived that\\nDavid was under the special protection of the Most High, and that\\nall his enemies must eventually fall before him. Thus he looked\\nforward to the future monarch s power and greatness, even in the\\nmoment when there seemed but a step between him and death and\\nasked his favor for his children, when he was an outcast and perse-", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0124.jp2"}, "123": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF SAUL. 113\\ncuted, shielded from destruction only by his generous interposition.\\nNo selfish feeling or wish, however, mingled with his devotion.\\nAgain and again he caused David to swear in the covenant between\\nthem and the reason is added for he loved him as he loved his\\nown souV He would bind him more and more closely to himself,\\nfor the loss of his affection would have been bitterer to him than any\\nother loss even of life itself.\\nDavid, on his part, had not this sense of his own superiority or\\nadvantage. He called to mind the covenant into which they had\\nentered at Jonathan s desire, and entreated, if iniquity were found\\nin him, that he would slay him, rather than give him up to the\\nking. Some distrust was here implied, not of Jonathan s regard or\\nconstancy, but his knowledge of Saul s real intentions, or his firmness\\nto withstand his father s anger in protecting him. What if thy\\nfather answer thee roughly David asked, when the proposition\\nwas made to sound him. How nobly did the prince vindicate from\\nall suspicion the inviolable fidelity of his friendship, in the scene that\\nensued with the infuriated monarch, when his own life was madly\\nattempted, because he boldly appealed to Saul s sense of justice in\\nDavid s behalf! He hastened from the presence of the king in grief\\nand indignation, not so much for the fierce assault on himself, as the\\nrelentless hate it manifested towards his friend. His true heart\\nwas grieved for David. -The final and fatal rupture was inevitable\\nDavid must be driven forth a hunted fugitive, while the harder lot\\nof continual strife with the evil that environed him, was to be his\\nwhile life endured.\\nOnce more, in the wood of Ziph, the friends met, and pledged\\nanew their mutual vows of everlasting fidelity. The fortunes of\\nDavid were apparently at their lowest ebb his life sought by the\\nking as an open enemy betrayed by those he had saved from their\\nfoes, and who had given him shelter a wanderer in the wilderness,\\nand surrounded by treacherous enemies, watchful to deliver him into\\nSaul s hand. Yet here the language of Jonathan was full of comfort", "height": "3508", "width": "2196", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0125.jp2"}, "124": {"fulltext": "114 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nand assurance. lie strengthened his hand in God directing his\\nhopes to the source of his own steadfast confidence, and bidding him\\nfear not for it was settled in the divine purpose that he should\\nescape all snares, and be king over Israel. How strikingly does this\\nexhibition of Jonathan s feelings show the religious foundation of\\ngenuine friendship His faith has proved victorious over all doubts\\nand fears for the beloved in the darkest hour he sees the approach\\nof the day of prosperity, and his heart rejoiced in the prospect.\\nWhat earthly affection could be more disinterested, more fervent,\\nmore touching and sublime\\nKoster, a German writer, has published an essay upon The\\ntragical quality in the history of the friendship of David and Jona-\\nthan. 1 The history, he says, is tragical, since, either in itself or\\nin its consequences, it so exhibits important events, that our sympa-\\nthy is awakened, and our sensibility deeply excited. An action is\\nstrongly characterized as tragical, when, though never fully accom-\\nplished, it exhibits a vehement struggle after something good, lofty,\\nand noble, developed by a complication of circumstances, involving\\na severe struggle between inclination and duty, or between two con-\\nflicting inclinations. How much of this entered into the history of\\nJonathan s love for David, may be seen by dwelling on the painful\\ncircumstances in which he was often placed, in the collision between\\ndutiful respect to Ins father and sovereign, and loyalty to his friend.\\nBy his zealous defence of David, he had incurred the deep resent-\\nment of Saul, who did not scruple to accuse him of joining in the\\nconspiracy against him, and even of stirring up his subject to rise in\\nrebellion. Aware of this from the first, Jonathan did not provoke\\nthe angry king by any pertinacious display of his partisanship after\\nthe hope of reconciliation was at an end, his meetings with David\\nwere held in secret. He followed the fortunes of his father, though\\nTranslated in Selections from German Literature, by Professors Ed-\\nwards and Park. Andover.", "height": "3520", "width": "2252", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0126.jp2"}, "125": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF SAUL. 115\\nhis heart was rent in twain by the cruel persecution of him he loved\\nbetter than life. In the last fatal battle of Mount Gilboa he fought\\nand fell beside Saul. Here, as Koster truly observes, the noble\\nJonathan removed gloriously the stain which had been publicly\\nfastened on him, and freed his honor from the suspicion of treason.\\nThe beautiful elegy composed by David in honor of his memory,\\nexpressly vindicates him from the unjust accusation.\\nIn the picture of Jonathan s friendship, therefore, we see concen-\\ntrated the noblest qualities the highest virtues which have ever\\nadorned human nature. The example is the brighter and more\\ntouching from the contrast of the hateful passions of the vindictive\\nmonarch, and the turbulence and darkness of the period. All the\\nsensibility to domestic attachments of which Saul was once capable,\\nwas swallowed up in his cherished envy, suspicion, and hatred. The\\nmalignant influence corrupted his whole mind, till ravaged by the\\nstorm it became a waste of desolation, under the wrath and curse\\nof Heaven. The ardent affection of Jonathan purified his heroic soul\\nfrom every selfish feeling, and taught him to discover and acquiesce\\nin the purpose of God, though it deprived him of a crown, and con-\\nsigned him to an early death.", "height": "3492", "width": "2192", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0127.jp2"}, "126": {"fulltext": "XIII.\\nTHE FAMILY OF DAVID.\\nIn the history of the wild and adventurous life of David, while\\nseeking refuge in woods and caves and desert fastnesses from the\\npursuit of Saul, there are touches full of meaning which unfold his\\ncharacter as a man, brave, generous, impulsive, yet magnanimous,\\nwith spirit born for dominion, aspiring to lofty things, but subdued\\nthrough faith to implicit submission to the Divine will. The slight\\naccount given of his early years shows him affectionate and faithful\\nin his relations to Ms family. The youngest of his brethren\\nalthough attractive in person and disposition, he appeared invested\\nwith no preference over them, but pursued his humble and laborious\\noccupation while they passed before Samuel for his choice of a king.\\nEither his own modesty, or his father s disregard of his qualifications,\\nprevented his coming at first among them to undergo the scrutiny.\\nHe was obedient to Jesse, as well after as before his anointing to be\\nthe successor of Saul nor do we find that the prospect of elevation to\\nthe throne inflated his mind with pride or ambition, or changed his\\ndeportment towards others who had a right to control his actions.\\nAfter his honorable reception at court, and the tokens of favor re-\\nceived from the monarch whose malady he had relieved by playing\\non the harp, he returned contentedly to Bethlehem, his duty being\\naccomplished, to resume his employment of keeping his father s\\nsheep. At Jesse s command, he went to the camp to carry provisions\\nto his brethren, and bring back tidings of their welfare. There the\\nhaughty and insulting challenge of the Philistine fired his generous\\nsoul with indignation, and with zeal for the honor of God and his\\ncountry. He replied with mildness to the unkind accusations of his\\neldest brother, not even repelling them, but simply calling his atten-\\n116", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0128.jp2"}, "127": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF DAVID. 11 7\\ntion to the cause sufficient to justify the interest he had manifested,\\nand the expression of his feeling.\\nMerab, the eldest daughter of Saul, was promised to David by the\\njealous king as a reward for his valor, but in the hope that his rash\\nbravery might lead him into some fatal encounter with the Philis-\\ntines. But when the time came for the espousals, she was given to\\nanother. The affection of the younger daughter, Michal, for the\\nyouthful hero, was well known of that the infatuated monarch\\ndetermined to take advantage, and urge David to his undoing. The\\ninvidious condition proposed was more than fulfilled there was no\\nexcuse for withholding his daughter, and Saul gave her, though\\nstirred to deeper malignity, and fearing David the more, on account\\nof the success of his enterprise, and the love with which he was\\nregarded by two of his own children. The affection borne him by\\nMichal and Jonathan, bestowed by both unsought, and clinging to\\nhim through peril and misfortune, seemed to the king s distempered\\nmind to forebode his future advancement, and establishment in the\\nhearts of those who were most bound to favor his own cause. Other\\nevidences of his popularity and increasing renown at length caused the\\noutbreak of secret malevolence into open and irreconcilable hostility.\\nWhen David sought refuge from Saul in the cave of Adullam,\\n1 Samuel xxii., his brethren and all his father s house came to\\nhim. Distrusting his own power for their protection, and unwilling\\nthat they should share his peril, he went to Mizpeh, and said to the\\nKing of Moab, Let my father and my mother, I pray thee, come\\nforth and be with you, till I know what God will do for me. How\\ntouching is the solicitude thus evinced for his parents safety, and\\nhow illustrative is the incident of his character as a son\\nA celebrated English authoress* has drawn David as a hero, so\\nsimply yet so beautifully, in the colors of the Scriptural history, that\\nI gladly substitute her remarks for anything I could say on the sub-\\nject\\nIf you institute the comparison between David and the Homeric\\nMiss Jewsburv in her Letters.", "height": "3500", "width": "2188", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0129.jp2"}, "128": {"fulltext": "118 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nchiefs, or with any recorded in classic and chivalrous history, or im-\\nmortalized in romance and song, you will find none so perfect as a\\nhero. Separate him altogether from the prophet and the saint, and\\nregard him simply as a warrior who lived at a period when war was\\nthe occupation of life, and personal prowess the sole distinction of\\ncharacter. And what do you find At the outset you have realized\\nromance in the ruddy shepherd boy, called from his songs and his\\nsheep, to be anointed to a crown. You have the daring of valor in\\nhis fearless combat with Goliath, and its simplicity in his unboasting\\nconquest whilst his minstrelsy in the court of Saul, his marriage\\nwith that monarch s daughter, the first and last days of his -friend-\\nship with the princely Jonathan, his chivalrous generosity of spirit\\nin contrast with the cold, mean, settled hatred of his persecutor, sug-\\ngest a thousand pictures to the heart and imagination. Examine\\nhim then in his wanderings, and in his subsequent prosperity as king\\nof Israel you will find the heroic traits still strong upon his cha-\\nracter. Observe his forbearance under injuries which, united with\\npower to avenge them, was unexampled, as opinions and manners\\nwere then constituted. Mark his readiness to acknowledge the\\nmerit of an opponent, proved by his expressions concerning Saul,\\nAbner, and Ishbosheth his recollection of kindness long since past\\nwitness his embassy to Hanun his munificence of spirit, and\\ncomplete freedom from sordid selfishness witness his care that all\\nwho tarried by the stuff should share like those that went down to\\nthe battle his sending, from his private portion of the spoil of the\\nAmalekites, presents to all Avhom he and his men were wont to\\nhaunt and his anxiety to prevent Ittai the Gittite from joining\\nhim in his flight from Absalom, because he was a stranger and an\\nexile. His refusal to drink the water, which, prompted by his\\nurgent desire, the three mighty men brake through the host of the\\nPhilistines to draw from the well of Bethlehem, is another fine in-\\nstance of generous self-denial finer even than that recorded of Sir\\nPhilip Sydney, because connected with noble contrition for his for-", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0130.jp2"}, "129": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF DAVID. 119\\nmer want of self-government. He poured it out unto the Lord,\\nand said, My God forbid it me that I should do this thing shall I\\ndrink the blood of these men that have put their lives in jeopardy\\nfor with the jeopardy of their lives they brought it. Therefore\\nhe would not drink it. Perhaps, however, the instance in which\\nDavid manifested the loftiest spirit, that which combined in itself\\nmost of the elements of true greatness, was the kingly offering\\nhe made out of his own proper goods to the service of that temple\\nhe was forbidden to build, renouncing at the same moment all credit\\nfor his munificence. Who am I, and what is my people that we\\nshould be able to offer so willingly after this sort for all things\\ncome of thee, and of thine own have we given thee. But David\\nwas not merely a mighty man of valor he possessed qualities it\\nwas impossible any heathen could possess, and which were his solely\\nby virtue of his knowledge of the true God. It is this remarkable\\nunion of contrary endowments which renders his heroic character so\\nperfect. Comparing him with other heroes of old, though acknow-\\nledging all their bravery and all their force of mind, we may alter\\nthe words of Manfred, and say that David had\\nNot these alone, but with them gentler powers\\nPity, and smiles, and tears, which they had not\\nAnd gentleness but that they had for some\\nHumility and that they never had.\\nThe character of Michal, as delineated by one or two touches in\\nthe history, deserves attention. She seems to have possessed a por-\\ntion of Jonathan s chivalrous spirit his admiration of gallant\\nexploits and heroic qualities mingled with some of the pride and\\nimperiousness of her royal father. The first appeared in her en-\\nthusiastic attachment to the victorious hero, which probably she took\\nno pains to conceal. All her imagination could paint of the lovely\\nand glorious was realized in his character. When she became his\\nwife, her duty to him and care for his safety were paramount", "height": "3500", "width": "2172", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0131.jp2"}, "130": {"fulltext": "120 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nto every other consideration. Her father having proclaimed his\\nenmity towards her husband, and his determination to persecute him\\nto the death the cause of David was her own. He came home in\\nhaste and perturbation, having narrowly escaped death by Saul s\\nown hand, in a violent paroxysm of his phrensy. He knew not as\\nyet how implacable was the enmity against him, till the messengers\\nwhom the king sent to take him were about his house, watchful to\\napprehend him as he should come forth in the morning. Michal\\nwas the first to warn him of the imminent peril in which he stood,\\nand urge his escape that night. It is not mentioned that she had\\nreceived any secret information concerning her father s intentions\\nbut the penetration of anxious affection may have discovered them.\\nShe assisted David to escape from the house under cover of night,\\nand contrived an ingenious stratagem to gain time for him to elude\\npursuit. The messengers of Saul, who came with orders to bear\\nhim to the monarch s presence, that he might gratify his hate by\\nslaying him with his own hand, discovered the deception. But\\nwhen the angry king demands of his daughter how she dared con-\\nnive at the escape of his enemy, and impose on him the falsehood\\nshe utters in vindication of her conduct is unworthy of the hero s\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a2\u00c2\u00abife. She did not firmly withstand, like her noble brother, the out-\\nbreak of her father s rage, nor oppose reason to his blind fury. In\\nthis subterfuge, which had not even the excuse of necessity for it is\\nnot likely that Saul would have wreaked his vengeance on her she\\nappears far less admirable than Jonathan, doing wrong to the repu-\\ntation which should have been most sacred in her eyes, while she\\npretended fear of David. Had she boldly justified herself on the\\ngreat principle of right and duty, or reproved her father for his\\nunnatural enmity, she might possibly have escaped the anguish of a\\nviolent separation from him she loved so tenderly in being given\\nto another. Perhaps the same dread of Saul s displeasure, which\\nhad induced her to depart from the truth, brought her to submit to\\nthis degradation.", "height": "3520", "width": "2232", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0132.jp2"}, "131": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF DAVID. 121\\nAfter the accession of David to the throne, when Abner, the\\ngeneral of Ishbosheth, proposed to join his party, and bring\\nover all Israel to his side, the condition on which David con-\\nsented to receive him into his service was, that his wife Michal\\nshould be restored to him. He sent to Ishbosheth a formal\\ndemand for his sister, whom he claimed as his own, having\\npaid Saul the dowry required for her at the peril of his life. His\\nmotive for this demand was probably regard for the beloved wife of\\nhis youth, who had shared his early days of prosperity, and suffered\\nin his adversity although some have surmised that he wished to\\nsecure his political interests by asserting his relationship to the de-\\nceased monarch, or to vindicate the law of God, onenly violated in\\nthe compulsory marriage of Michal to Phaltiei. The claim was\\nacknowledged, and Michal restored accordingly. Phaltiei had a\\nstrong affection for her it is recorded that he followed her weeping\\nas far as Bahurim not walking by her side, as one about to be torn\\nfrom an endeared companion, whose grief at the parting was no less\\nthan his own but behind her, as unworthy to be her equal, or to\\nwin even a look from her when she was leaving him for ever. The\\ncommand to return was given, not by her, but by the general who\\naccompanied her as an escort. Phaltiei obeyed it in despair,\\nwhile the princess, probably heeding little his anguish or his love,\\npursued her way to the high fortune that awaited her as David s\\nwife to the happiness of a reunion with him who had possessed her\\nyouthful affections.\\nThe conduct of Michal on the occasion of the bringing of the ark\\nin triumphal procession to the city David had chosen for his royal\\nresidence, shows her character in no amiable light. After the\\nestablishment of his capital on the hill of Zion, it was the next step\\nof David to provide a place for the tabernacle and the ark of God,\\nthat a religious spirit might be promoted throughout the land by\\nthe regular and solemn performance of the sacred services. The\\npreparations being completed for the reception of the ark, a feast was\\n6", "height": "3488", "width": "2180", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0133.jp2"}, "132": {"fulltext": "122 FAMILY PICTURES FKO:.I TIT C BIBLE.\\nmade for the people, and it was brought up into the city m the\\nmidst of the rejoicing multitude, with festal shouting and dancing\\nand the sound of trumpets, and the magnificent song of praise\\ncomposed for the occasion by the royal minstrel. It was a day of\\ngreat joy for Israel, after the years of civil strife and war with foreign\\nenemies, when the land had groaned under the weight of oppression\\nand violence. The coming of the ark to its permanent place of\\nabode, the place of solemn assemblage for the tribes henceforward,\\nwas a token of the peace and prosperity that should bless the nation\\nunder the reign of the king God had given them in mercy. Kindled\\nwith holy enthusiasm, David had laid aside his royal robes, and\\ngirded him with a linen ephod, forgetful of his rank and state, eager\\nto be lowly in the sight of God, and to mingle with the people as\\none of themselves. While he gave expression to the emotions of\\nhis heart by the tokens of joy and thankfulness customary in festal\\nreligious services, there was one gazing upon him from the window\\nof his palace, who took no part in the general delight. The daughter\\nof Saul had been accustomed to little veneration for the sacred\\nordinances, nor had she a spiritual perception of the blessings of\\nwhich the presence of the ark was a pledge. She had looked with\\ncomplacency on David when, at the head of thousands, he had gone\\nforth to battle, or returned crowned with victory she despised him\\nwhen he voluntarily stripped himself of royal dignity and appeared\\nas one of the meanest of the people, for she thought his zealous\\ntransports unbecoming the monarch, and tending to make him\\ncontemptible in the eyes of his subjects. This incident shows her\\nwant of appreciation of David s character, as well as her overweening-\\nregard for appearances and temporal honors. Had she truly loved\\nher royal husband, sympathy with his feelings would have taught\\nher respect for their demonstration, even could she not have entered\\ninto the national enthusiasm. But her pride was greater than her\\nlove and, that being offended, no affection restrained the reproach\\nthat sprang to her lips. ^Vhen David had made an end of offering", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0134.jp2"}, "133": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF DAVID. 123\\nsacrifices, and had blessed the people, distributing portions to all, he\\nreturned home to join his household in a feast of thanksgiving.\\nThere is significance in the Scriptural description of Michal as the\\ndaughter of Saul. Her father s haughty spirit was in her looks\\nand words as she came forth to meet David, with ironical, con-\\ntemptuous, bitter speech which displayed her passion and folly, and\\nto which her husband replied in a manner so worthy of one who\\nconsidered the favor of the Lord his greatest glory. After this\\noccurrence, she is mentioned no more in the sacred history, except\\nthat it is said she remained childless to her death.\\nVery different was the conduct of Abigail, another wife of David.\\nShe is described as being of a good understanding, and of a\\nbeautiful countenance expressions which comprehend all personal\\ngraces and mental gifts that adorn the female character. She was\\nthe wife of Nabal, a man who had large possessions, but who in\\ntemper and conduct was utterly unworthy of her. David s troops\\nhad not only refrained from injuring the servants of JSTabal, but had\\ngiven protection to their pastures and flocks and in return he\\nrequested a supply of provisions. The message was answered by\\nthe churlish man with refusal embittered by insult and David\\nprepared to avenge himself. His anger was arrested by the\\nprudence and ingenuity of Abigail. Taking with her propitiatory\\ngifts, she rode forth, attended by her servants, to meet David and\\nhis men armed for their hostile expedition. Her conduct at the\\nencounter displays consummate judgment and discretion. Mindful\\nof the provoking taunts of Nabal, she hastened to pay him the\\nreverence due to a superior, to address him in the most humble and\\ndeprecating language, and entreat that the blame of the transaction\\nmight rest on herself. Her whole address is admirable for the\\nwisdom, delicacy, good feeling, and piety it exhibits in her\\nintimation that the well-known character of Nabal for insolence and\\nchurlishness should place him beneath the notice of David; her\\nexpression of confidence that God himself had interposed to keep his", "height": "3504", "width": "2164", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0135.jp2"}, "134": {"fulltext": "124 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nservant from revenge and bloodshed that the sure protection of\\nHeaven would be his, since evil had not been found in him that\\nhis life should be preserved in spite of persecution, and he should\\nfinally be advanced to the kingdom. Her allusion to David s\\nmilitary services, and her suggestion, conveyed in a manner which\\ncould give no offence, that remorse and repentance would follow\\nhasty and causeless violence with the other persuasive arguments\\nshe employs display so much of what is in modern days called\\ntact, as to justify the belief that Abigail was a woman of singular\\nintellectual endowments. Her modesty and faith were not less\\nremarkable, and seem to have had the most powerful effect upon\\nthe mind of David. He was thankful for her interference, chiefly\\nbecause it preserved him from shedding blood to avenge himself.\\nHer petition and her offering were accepted, and she returned home\\nto the husband she had saved, to find him grovelling in excess. It\\nwas not long ordained that she should surfer a fate worse than that\\ninflicted by Mezentius, who bound the living to the dead. After\\nNabal s death, David sent messengers to Carmel, with proposals of\\nmarriage to the beautiful and gifted woman who had rescued him\\nfrom the dominion of his own anger, and whose prudent conduct\\nhad secured his admiration and esteem. Abigail received his\\nmessage as feeling herself honored by it, and gave her consent with\\nthe wonted oriental expression of humility and submission. Attend-\\ned by five of her maidens, she again rode forth to meet him, no\\nlonger a trembling suppliant, but a welcome and beloved guest, to\\nbecome his companion through all his trials, and to share the state\\nher faith in God had taught her to anticipate for him.\\nIn the descent of the Amalekites upon Ziklag in the absence of\\nDavid and his men, his two wives, Ahinoam and Abigail, were\\ncarried away captives. He pursued and overtook the enemy, slaugh-\\ntered them without mercy, and rescued the prisoners. These two\\nof his wives were with him during his temporary exile in the land\\nof the Philistines, when he fled from Saul to Achish.", "height": "3548", "width": "2248", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0136.jp2"}, "135": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF DAVID. 125\\nThe crimes committed by David to obtain Bathsheba for his wife,\\nnot only interrupted the peace of his soul with his Maker, but\\ndestroyed his peace as the father of a family. The first bitter fruit\\nwas tasted in the death of the child of Uriah s wife. In the deep\\nanguish of David we see the strength of his parental feelings. This\\npassionate love of his children was wounded in his punishment, as in\\nhis sin he had outraged all that is sacred in the domestic relations.\\nIt was the turning point in his fortunes thenceforward the sword\\ndid not depart from his house, over which hung the malediction of\\nHeaven. The wickedness of his sons was the source of the disasters\\nwhich covered with gloom the remainder of his life. The dark\\ntragedy of Ammon was followed by the rebellion of Absalom, whom\\nthe king had recalled from his banishment for his brother s murder,\\nand with ill-judged lenity had re-admitted to his presence and favor.\\nThe outbreak of the revolt, for which artful preparations had long\\nbeen making by the ambitious prince, the horrors of civil war, fol-\\nlowed, with the retreat of David from his capital, under the weight\\nof his bitter humiliation. Yet, driven forth by his ungrateful people\\nhis throne usurped, and his life sought by his own son humbled\\nunder a sense of his guilt before God an outcast surrounded by\\nperil, when the decisive battle is fought, his last charge to the cap-\\ntains of _ his army, in the hearing of the people, is to respect the\\nyoung man Absalom. How melancholy is the picture of the king\\nawaiting tidings of the battle in the gates of Mahanaim The\\npious Ahimaaz, who first brings news of the victory, would fain pre-\\npare his mind, by suspense, for the fatal event but the next mes-\\nsenger reveals all. The immoderate and imprudent grief of David\\nshows the fond excess of his parental love. The king was much\\nmoved, and went up to the chamber over the gate and wept and\\nas he wept, thus he said O, my son Absalom my son, my son\\nAbsalom Would to God I had died for thee, O Absalom, my\\nson, my son! The victory was turned into mourning, and the", "height": "3508", "width": "2228", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0137.jp2"}, "136": {"fulltext": "12G FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\npeople who had triumphed got them by stealth that day into the\\ncity, as people being ashamed steal away when they flee in battle,\\nwhile their sovereign gave way to the anguish of his bereavement.\\nMiss Jewsbury, in another of her admirable Letters, draws an\\ningenious parallel between this Scripture narrative and a scene in\\nShakspeare s tragedy of Macbeth The announcement to Macduff\\nof the murder of his family, and to David of the death of Absalom.\\nThe spirit and construction are essentially the same, and it is inte-\\nresting to see how closely a first-rate production of art approximates\\nto the simplicity of nature. The transcendent dramatist has only\\nbeen natural the simple narrator of events has been dramatic.\\nBoth represent a bereaved parent, and that parent s grief, in heart-\\nbroken, heartbreaking words. When the watchman reports the\\napproach of Ahimaaz, and David replies, He is a good man, and\\ncometh with good tidings, we have one of the subtlest springs\\nof human nature touched without design. Yet, who does not know\\nthe operation of that principle which hopes or fears according to the\\nmedium by which intelligence is conveyed, and again reflects back\\nupon that medium the precise feeling which the intelligence has\\nexcited Shakspeare gives a tine illustration of this in another\\nplace, where he makes Constance say to the bearer of ill tidings\\nThy news hath made thee a most ugly man.\\nThen follows another of those delicate touches which go home\\nand instantly to the heart. Of each succeeding messenger David\\nasks but one question, for his soul knows but one anxiety it concerns\\nnot the battle, though upon that is his crown depending but Is\\nthe young man Absalom safe In the history and the tragedy the\\nmessengers alike give evasive replies in the first instance, and the\\nsufferers are represented as guessing the truth before they hear it.\\nDavid, more unkinged by grief than by his son s rebellion, rose from", "height": "3544", "width": "2244", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0138.jp2"}, "137": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF DAVID, 127\\nhis place, and went up to the chamber above the gate he asked\\nno farther question, desired no other intelligence, and craved no\\nroyal privilege, save the privilege to weep alone. His people were\\ngathering round those who had saved and those who had injured\\nhim the din of battle and the shout of victory were in his ear\\nhe saw and heard, but heeded not, for his soul was gone forth to\\nAbsalom, cut off in the full blossom of his iniquities to Absalom,\\nhis beautiful and brave and the victory that day was turned into\\nmourning. His recovered crown, his re-established throne, were\\nvain comforters for his lost child. In David we see the monarch\\nforgotten in the father in Macduff, after the first paroxysm of sor-\\nrow, the husband and father become merged in the warrior, who\\nresolves to make him medicine s of his great revenge. 1 This is\\ncharacteristic but had both been poetic imaginations, we cannot\\ndoubt which would have been considered of the highest order. One\\nother observation on this passage. In David mourning over Absa-\\nlom, one would think that pathos reached its climax but it does\\nnot till the subsequent chapter, where his grief is rebuked by the\\nimperious Joab and at the suggestion (command more properly)\\nof the slayer of his son, he goes again to sit in the gate, speak-\\ncomfortably unto his servants, and seem to forget his child. With\\nthis assumed self-control, and real submission to the will of others,\\nremember that David was a lion-like man, one whom his own\\nsoldiers pronounced the light of Israel.\\nThe latter days of David were disturbed by the ambitious preten-\\nsions of Adonijah, the brother of Absalom, to the royal succession.\\nHe too, it appears, had been injudiciously indulged by his father,\\nand too closely resembled his brother in his ingratitude, his impe-\\nrious disposition, and his affectation of regal pomp. Informed of\\nhis conspiracy in time, David lost no time in having Solomon\\nanointed and proclaimed as king.\\nIn the midst of his splendor and prosperity, David forgot not his\\ncovenant with Jonathan, but showed kindness to his son, Mephibo-", "height": "3484", "width": "2196", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0139.jp2"}, "138": {"fulltext": "128 FAMILY FIC1CKES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nsheth, for his sake. We see from this as well as other instances of\\nconduct, that he was a man of warm affections, such as, regulated by\\nprudence and controlled by religion, might have rendered his domes-\\ntic life as happy as his reign was illustrious. But through his own\\nfolly and guilt all this was marred, till the springs whence flow the\\npurest streams of human happiness, poured forth turbid waters that\\nfertilized not, but swept all before them to destruction. Let the\\nsolemn warning of David s example instruct all who read his\\nhistory.", "height": "3520", "width": "2232", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0140.jp2"}, "139": {"fulltext": "XIV-.\\nTHE FAMILY OF SOLOMON.\\nThe oath of David that Solomon should reign after him was\\ngiven to Bathsheba his mother, but no t merely to please her ambi-\\ntion or show her favor. He was appointed of God from his birth\\nto the throne, and his father, in designating him for his successor,\\nspoke by the Spirit of the Lord. That Bathsheba had influence, is\\nevident from the application of Nathan the prophet to her in the\\nemergency of Adonijah s usurpation, and his intimation that her\\nown life, as well as that of her son, was in danger from the fears of\\nthe prince, should his power, already formidable through the aid of\\nJoab and Abiathar, become established. Adonijah s subsequent\\npetition to her, that she would obtain Solomon s consent to his mar-\\nriage with Abishag, was made because he believed the king would\\nnot refuse any request preferred by her. He calculated not only upon\\nher kindness of heart, but her want of penetration nor was he mis-\\ntaken, for she dreamed not of the insidious design concealed under\\nhis proposal, and presented his petition as if it had been her own.\\nSolomon, on the other hand, saw through the artifice at once. The\\npossession of the wives or harem of a deceased sovereign was con-\\nnected in popular opinion with the title to his crown. Absalom\\nthus asserted his claim to his father s kingdom, and the quarrel\\nbetween Ishbosheth and Abner was occasioned by a similar step\\ntowards the accomplishment of ambitious schemes. The artful\\ncharacter of Adonijah had been shown by his previous conduct it\\nwas now evident that he and his adherents had not relinquished\\ntheir plans, nor their hopes of ultimate success and it became ne-\\ncessary for the security and peace of the kingdom that such restless\\nand scheming aspirants should be removed out of the way. The\\n(3% ]29", "height": "3504", "width": "2220", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0141.jp2"}, "140": {"fulltext": "130 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nsternness of the king in pronouncing the doom, and ordering the\\nexecution of his brother, must be justified as necessary for the pre-\\nvention of civil war, and the establishment of his authority over the\\nwhole nation. He speaks as certain of the Divine approval of his\\ndecision. In this very scene his reverence 1 and affection for his\\nmother are strikingly manifested. When she came into his presence\\nhe rose to meet her, and rendered her the homage of an obeisance,\\nsuch as was common from an inferior to a superior. Then resuming\\nhis seat upon his throne for it is probable the interview was in pub-\\nlic he caused a seat to be set for her at his right hand, thus\\nhonoring her before all the people as the king s mother. When\\nshe spoke of her petition, he answered with respectful tenderness,\\nbidding her say on, for that nothing she could ask would be denied\\na promise which implied the supposition that the request would be\\nsuch as it became her to make, and him to grant. As she attempt-\\ned no remonstrance when he pronounced the sentence of death, it\\nis likely she was immediately convinced of her error, and acquiesced*\\nin its justice.\\nThe reign of Solomon brought the Hebrew empire to its period\\nof greatest extent and splendor. Both his internal government and\\nforeign treaties were regulated with consummate wisdom, so as to\\nsecure the peace of his subjects and the respect of neighboring-\\nnations. Commerce flowed through his territories his wealth was\\nimmense his sumptuous palaces, and the magnificence that sur-\\nrounded him, realized the gorgeous dreams of oriental imagination\\nthe fame of his luxury and his wisdom spread into distant lands,\\nand brought princes to pay the homage of their admiration, and\\nwonder at an understanding and knowledge surpassing that of other\\nmen. So great and widely extended was the renown of his riches,\\nand honor, and wisdom, that eastern tradition invested him with\\nsupernatural powers, and sovereignty over the world of genii and\\nspirits. Still higher distinction, it was permitted him to build a\\nhouse for the Lord of Hosts the temple which was to be the dwell-", "height": "3552", "width": "2252", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0142.jp2"}, "141": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF SOLOMON. 131\\nino; of Him whom heaven and the heaven of heavens could not\\ncontain. He was favored of God, and received the promise of the\\nkingdom for his posterity, as it had been made before, on the condi-\\ntion of persevering obedience. The brightness of this life and reign\\nwere tarnished their termination fatally clouded by such folly on\\nthe part of the wisest of men, as must furnish to all who read his\\nhistory a melancholy and humiliating lesson.\\nThe first marriage of Solomon seems to have been with JSTaamah,\\nthe Ammonitess, since her son, Rehoboam, was born a year before\\nhis accession to the throne. Soon after he became king, he formed\\na treaty of alliance with the monarch of Egypt, and solemnly\\nespoused his daughter. She resided in Jerusalem only till the com-\\npletion of the temple and the royal palace, and then removed into\\na palace built expressly for her in another part of the country.\\nSolomon s reason for assigning her this residence is given in the\\nSecond Book of Chronicles My wife shall not dwell in the house\\nof David, King of Israel, because the places are holy, whereunto\\nthe ark of the Lord hath come. Though supposed to be a prose-\\nlyte, she was a stranger by birth to the covenant and the privileges\\nof Israel her court might be frequented by those who had no part\\nwith the chosen people, or despised the ordinances they held sacred,\\nand the guardian of the national worship deemed it not right that\\nthe place of the sanctuary should be profaned by the presence of\\nidolaters. Happy for him and his people had it been, had his\\nregard for the faith of his country been always thus inviolate\\nThe cause of the sad change in Solomon s later years is pointedly\\nindicated. His love for the women of heathen extraction whom he\\nhad married, led him not merely to countenance the worship of the\\ndifferent deities in which they believed, but himself to join in their\\nidolatrous services, consecrating high places for the purpose, and one\\non the hill before Jerusalem, in view of the temple he had built\\nand dedicated to the God of earth and heaven. We read of no\\nmore melancholy instance of human depravity. He who in infancy", "height": "3492", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0143.jp2"}, "142": {"fulltext": "132 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nhad been named beloved of the Lord, who had been reared in\\nthe precepts of a spiritual religion by the example of a father\\nwhose heart was set to obey them who had been honored with\\nsuch glorious gifts of intellect, power, and prosperity, beyond all\\nthe kings of earth whose fame had gone into all lands, and\\nshould live to the end of time whose wisdom had been a light and\\ninstruction to the world that he should fall into such weakness and\\ndepravity He had summed up his estimate of human greatness\\nand enjoyment in the sentence, Vanity of vanities a conclusion\\ntaught by the experience of a life crowded with all the pleasures\\nand the grandeur of the world his apostasy now showed the worth\\nof human ability. It is not recorded that the princess of Egypt\\nbeguiled him to join in the worship of her country s gods and\\nperhaps the pride of having kept his allegiance to the national faith\\nin this instance led him to indulge his roving fancy in the choice of\\nwives from the neighboring nations, against alliance with whom\\nthe Israelites had been expressly warned, with a declaration of the\\nconsequence Surely they will turn away your heart after their\\ngods. In the confidence of superior intellect Solomon presumed\\nto violate this injunction, and forgetting the world-old truth woe to\\nthe man who entertains temptation became guilty of the high\\ntreason to the sovereignty of heaven, which forfeited the kingdom\\nof Israel for his descendants.\\nWe see thus the fatal error of this wise, magnificent, and power-\\nful monarch, to have been in his domestic relations. Choosing for\\nbeauty rather than for higher qualities, he yielded no better judg-\\nment to vain allurements, and surrendered the dominion of his\\nspirit into hands that drew him from the path of right. Not at\\nonce, it is probable, did he trample on the most solemn obligations\\nof a Jewish monarch. He had no deliberate design of disloyalty\\nhe was unguarded, because he thought his purpose honest he\\nbut turned aside, tempted by free will, and in the wantonness of\\nindependence, one step from the trodden path of duty, keeping that", "height": "3520", "width": "2232", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0144.jp2"}, "143": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF SOLOMON. 133\\nclose beside him that he might regain it when he pleased. He\\nmeant at first merely to grant a reasonable privilege to those who\\nhad forsaken home and country for him, with freedom of conscience\\nto worship in the faith of their own nation. Thus by degrees his\\nheart was turned away from the truth, and his attendance on\\nheathen rites set an example of flagrant apostasy to the whole\\nnation. The picture darkens as we gaze upon it. Enemies were\\nraised up around him in his declining years rebellion and discon-\\ntent environed him the son of his servant, encouraged by the pre-\\ndiction that he should govern the ten tribes, ventured to lift up his\\nhand against the king. His kingdom disquieted and insecure his\\nsubjects murmuring, and involved in the guilt of his idolatry re-\\nproved if not rejected for ever of the God of his fathers, Solomon\\nsank in premature old age into his grave, a monument of warning\\nto all ages in that the lustre of his meridian was eclipsed by the\\ngloom of his latter days.", "height": "3500", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0145.jp2"}, "144": {"fulltext": "XV.\\nTHE FAMILY OF AHAB.\\nIt is recorded of Ahab, the son of Omri, that he did more to\\nprovoke the Lord God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel\\nthat were before him. His wickedness, and the apostasy of his\\npeople, reached their height when Jezebel, the daughter of the king\\nof Sidon, became his wife. This imperious and cruel woman was\\nnot content with bringing over the king to the worship of the\\nSidonian deity, but labored to introduce it as the national faith,\\npersecuting those who adhered to the religion of their fathers.\\nTemples and groves were consecrated to Baal idolatrous prophets\\nwere entertained at the expense of the impious queen and the un-\\nbounded power she obtained was exercised to destroy the prophets\\nof Jehovah from the land. Hers was a nature strongly endowed,\\nand capable of exerting vast influence either for good or evil\\na Catharine de Medicis in intellect as well as in ferocity, her indomi-\\ntable will subdued to her sway all the minds with which her own\\ncame into contact. Her mental superiority to her husband is plainly\\nintimated. The persecution by which the ancient religion was nearly\\nexterminated was carried on at her instigation, and by her acknow-\\nledged authority the prophets were slain by her command. When\\nAhab informed her of the disastrous termination of the trial at\\nMount Carmel, and the destruction of the heathen prophets, she\\ndoes not appear to share in the fears of the weak and guilty monarch.\\nThe only emotion she exhibits is rage her message to Elijah\\nthreatens a deadly vengeance, with a fearful imprecation on herself\\nshould she fail to execute it. The prophet, showing more dread of\\nher wrath than he had previously of that of Ahab for he knew her\\nmalignant and unscrupulous nature fled for his life into the desert.\\n134", "height": "3520", "width": "2248", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0146.jp2"}, "145": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF AHAB. 135\\nThe king had not ventured to withstand his authority when he\\nordered the death of Baal s prophets a temporary reconciliation,\\nat least as far as appearances went, had taken place between them,\\nand Elijah had paid a mark of respect and loyalty to his sovereign,\\nby running before the royal chariot to the entrance of Jezreel. But\\nthe anger of the haughty queen crushed at once the hopes he began\\nto entertain of the restoration of his country. Her enmity was un-\\nsubdued by the miraculous answer to his appeal, which had extorted\\nconfession from the assembled people, and humbled the monarch\\ninto silent obedience her power was yet absolute and forgetting,\\nin his despair, that there was a Power who could bend the mightiest\\nhuman will, and work out his own good pleasure by the wrath of\\nman, he gave up all in the bitterness of disappointment, and desired\\nonly to end his life in the desolate wilderness When, afterwards,\\nAhab coveted the vineyard of Naboth, and failed in his negotiation\\nfor obtaining it, his unscrupulous consort not only devised means\\nof securing the possession, but at once proceeded to put them in\\nexecution. No hesitation in her purpose, either from conscientious\\nmotives, or doubt of her ability to accomplish her determination,\\nappears in her speech to the king, when she first learns the cause of\\nhis despondency. She does not by mere suggestion or persuasion\\nincite her husband to acts of treachery and violence she takes the\\nmatter boldly into her own hands, bidding him be at ease, and inti-\\nmating that she would teach him how to govern the kingdom. The\\nhigh-handed atrocity of the measures she adopted, her writing in\\nAhab s name and using his seal, and the report of the elders and\\nnobles to her and not the king, show that she was in the habit of\\nexercising the regal power to advance her purposes of cruelty and\\nviolence. When her victim was dead, and his confiscated estate in\\nthe king s power, she informs Ahab of the event with a kind of\\nhaughty brevity, expressive of her character. She does not say,\\nThe enterprise has succeeded you can now take possession of the\\nspoil but, as if triumphing in the success of her wickedness, pre-", "height": "3492", "width": "2192", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0147.jp2"}, "146": {"fulltext": "136 FAMILY .I ICTURES FHOM THE BIBLE.\\nfaces the communication of Naboth s death with a command to arise\\nand take possession, dwelling on the incident of the vineyard s hav-\\ning been refused in the way of purchase, as if designing to mark\\nthe distinction between the sagacity of Aliab and her own bold pro-\\nceeding. This transaction was but in keeping with the general tenor\\nof Ahab s conduct, which did sell himself to work wickedness in\\nthe sight of the Lord while the testimony is added whom\\nJezebel his wife stirred up. When Elijah came by the Divine com-\\nmand to denounce vengeance upon the wicked pair, then in possession\\nof the coveted property, though Ahab exhibited every external token\\nof humiliation and penitence, thus obtaining a respite from the\\nthreatened evil, it is not mentioned that his proud wife showed any\\nsign of terror or remorse. She was the bolder offender, being re-\\nstrained by none of the early religious impressions which the most\\nabandoned Israelite could hardly throw off. And in the last fearful\\nscene, when the doom denounced had already been fulfilled on her\\nson, and Jezebel awaited in her palace at Jezreel the triumphal en-\\ntrance of the new monarch of Israel, her pride was in no way sub-\\ndued. Arraying herself like a queen, as one who scorned the part\\nof a mourner or a suppliant, she stood at a window, and accosted\\nthe conqueror as he approached with haughty and reproachful\\nspeech. Had Zimri peace, who slew his master she asked, as\\nthreatening him with the fate of the traitor who had fallen before\\nOmri, the father of Ahab. It is not likely that she hoped aught\\nfrom the clemency of the victor, or expected to awe him into gene-\\nrosity. She wished not to survive her queenly state, and determined\\nto die as she had lived, defiant and dreadless, yielding in contempt,\\nas it were, of the power which she could not resist. No considera-\\ntion for her royal condition weighed with the stern Jehu to spare\\nher life, although he ordered burial for her corpse, because, though\\na cursed woman, she was a king s daughter. But even this\\nrelenting came too late, and the prophet s word was fulfilled.\\nThe last scene in Jezebel s life might invest her character with a", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0148.jp2"}, "147": {"fulltext": "THE JFAMILT OF AHAB. 137\\ncoloring of heroism, could we imagine her firmness the result of any\\nnoble or unselfish feeling. It was not the queen losing feminine\\ntimidity in grief for the fall of her house and dynasty, nor the mother\\noverwhelmed by the catastrophe that had made her childless, and\\nforgetting her own peril to hurl her curse upon the murderer of her\\nson it was the flinty-hearted and despotic woman, who had used\\nher power to crush all that dared oppose her will, and who scorned to\\nlive when stripped of it. No thought of conciliation finds place in\\nher mind, for its gloom had never been lighted up by a spark of any\\ngreat or generous emotion. She never showed mercy, and she asks\\nnone. Her path has been through blood and misery, over the\\ndesolation of many whose rights she has trampled on, and she must\\nnot shrink from the goal to which it has conducted her. Her\\nunderstanding has been fettered by cold-blooded selfishness to this\\nthe promptings of nature and humanity were ever sacrificed. No\\nprinciple but the desire to extend and consolidate her own power\\nhas guided her life, and she has no belief in future retribution to\\nappal her in the prospect of death. Yet, repulsive as she is, we can\\nfeel no contempt for such a character. Her deliberate and relent-\\nless cruelty may excite fear or hate, but her steadfastness of purpose,\\nher resistless will, invest her with a species of dignity, which, terrible\\nas it is, secures her from the scorn we should feel for one so\\nwicked, of inferior nature. In the depths of her own soul no soft or\\nbeautiful image was ever reflected the stern and the hateful alone\\nabide in those recesses, unvisited by kindly gleams of sunshine.\\nThere have been a few such characters among women in the world s\\nhistory, and they stand forth with appalling prominence,\\nIn human guilt a portent and an era,\\nshowing to what a pinnacle of wickedness she whose part it should\\nbe to purify, may rise, when the restraints of moral principle are cast\\noff, and genius is made the handmaid of depravity.\\nThe character of Ahab offers in some respects a contrast to that", "height": "3512", "width": "2228", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0149.jp2"}, "148": {"fulltext": "138 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nof his wife. He appears in subjection to her superior will, in being\\nstirred up to execute the mischief devised by her. But at times he\\ncannot escape from the influence of the belief he has renounced.\\nAfter the continuance of the drought three years, when driven to\\nthe last resource, he sends Obadiah, whom, though a devoted servant\\nof the Lord, he had not dismissed from his office, to search the laud\\nfor pasture. In the encounter with Elijah, though he reproaches\\nthe prophet as the cause of the country s sufferings, he dares not\\nshow anger when the reproach is thrown back nor does he hesitate\\nto obey the command to gather the people and the prophets for the\\ndecisive trial at Mount CarmeL His submission to the first haughty\\nmessage of the King of Syria, and his going forth against him when\\nreassured by the word of a prophet, are equally characteristic as is\\nthe mercy he shows the fallen monarch, in violation of the command\\nof God, for which sin he is so impressively rebuked.\\nNo part of the Jewish history is more remarkable than the\\ninstrumentality of the prophets in those days of irreligion and. dis-\\nturbance. The Levites had departed, the priesthood was degraded\\nbut by the mouth of these chosen teachers, who went, as occasion\\ndirected, from place to place, it pleased the Lord yet to rebuke\\niniquity. Their warnings were often delivered in a manner most\\nimpressive and picturesque. Sometimes visited suddenly with the\\ndivine inspiration, the messenger went forth to bear the word of the Lord\\nwhither he was directed to carry it unable himself to refrain from\\ndischarging his office, and stayed at the imminent peril of those who\\nattempted to turn aside his steps. Ahijah met Jeroboam alone in\\nthe field, caught his new garment and rent it into twelve pieces,\\nbefore he announced to the chief the intended partition of the tribes.\\nSamuel took occasion by the rending of his mantle to express the\\nrending: of the kinorlom from the house of Saul. Other emblematic\\nactions are recorded, which served to illustrate the messages delivered\\naccording to the manner of Eastern nations. But not only in single\\ninstances, and under direct commission from Heaven, were the", "height": "3544", "width": "2248", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0150.jp2"}, "149": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF AHAB. 139\\nprophets useful they formed a class, educated in. the fear of\\nJehovah and under the supervision of holy men, the business of\\nwhose life it was to instruct the people, to uphold the righteous\\ncause, and to protest against iniquity wherever it was practised. So\\ngreat was the danger of detection, should any of this privileged\\nand respected class prove treacherous to his duty, and so\\nsevere were the penalties, that they were generally found faithful\\nthough sometimes false prophets ventured to speak in the name of\\nthe Lord. They were honored universally, and resorted to in\\nextremity, even by the evil-minded kings who persecuted them.\\nAhab s subsequent acts showed the same vacillating and pusilla-\\nnimous spirit as in the matter of Naboth. Perplexed with the\\ncontradictory prophecies of the seers he consults, preparatory to\\nthe expedition against Ramoth-Gilead, but persuaded by the lying\\nprophets who assured him of success, he endeavors to secure himself\\nfurther by ordering Micaiah to severe imprisonment till his return in\\npeace, and by putting on a disguise before entering into the battle.\\nAll his actions thus evince the narrowness and feebleness of his\\nunderstanding, as well as the depravity of his heart. It was a\\ndeliverance for Israel when his house was destroyed.\\nThe similarity, says Miss Jewsbury, between Ahab and Mac-\\nbeth, between Jezebel and Lady Macbeth, and a parallel resemblance\\nin their style of action, has always struck me exceedingly. The\\nportrait of Macbeth, when matured in villany\\nBloody,\\nLuxurious, avaricious, false, deceitful,\\nSudden, malicious, smacking of every sin\\nThat has a name\\nprecisely describes Ahab every epithet might be proved by an\\naction. Nevertheless the excess of wickedness is, in both instances,\\nto be charged on the influence of their respective wives, who, bolder\\nin mind and blacker in heart than themselves, became their teachers", "height": "3504", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0151.jp2"}, "150": {"fulltext": "140 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nand tempters in sin. The resemblance between the queens is even\\nmore perfect. Both were filled from the crown to the toe topfull\\nof direst cruelty, mingled with a spirit of pure demoniac firmness,\\nwhich knew not, or if it knew, heeded not the relentings of nature.\\nTheir minds were compact and integral they contained no oppos-\\ning principle which might impede their progress in evil, or embitter\\nsuccess so that murder itself, when apparently necessary to the\\nattainment of an object, was consonant not contrary to their\\nnature. It was not so with their lords, who, in comparison with\\neach fiend-like queen, were full o the milk of human kindness.\\nAhab evidenced this after his victory over the Syrians. Benhadad,\\nto whom he had formerly been a vassal, then sent messengers to\\nhim girded with sackcloth, and with ropes on their necks, to petition\\nfor his life, and Ahab said, Is he yet alive he is my brother\\nand he made a covenant with him, and sent him away.\\nAgain it was by yielding to the delusions of the weird sisters\\nthat Macbeth laid the foundation of his after crimes and sorrows\\ntheir spells and promises clouded his mind like emanations from the\\npit of darkness, which needed but the influence of his wife to quicken\\ninto substantial evil. So it was with Ahab he too sought to\\nwizards and them that had evil spirits. In the grand crime of each,\\nthe murder of Naboth and Duncan, the parallel of each is minute\\nand unbroken. Macbeth, who was only a Thane, coveted the\\ngolden round of sovereignty. Ahab, who, already a king, had no\\nneed to desire a crown, was disquieted for a neighbor s vineyard a\\nproof, by the way, how little it is the intrinsic worth of an object\\nwhich regulates the desires of an unsatisfied heart. Both would\\nwrongly win, yet in the first instance would not play false one\\ntook his disappointment in sullen silence, the other was almost per-\\nsuaded to rest satisfied as Glamis and Cawdor. Then appear the\\nmaster spirits. Lady Macbeth thus taunts her hesitating Thane,\\nand, with the hardihood of guilt without fear, developes the purpose\\nwhich he has desired without conceiving;", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0152.jp2"}, "151": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF AHAB. 141\\nArt thou afeard\\nTo be the same in thine own act and valor\\nAs thou art in desire 1 Would st thou have that\\nWhich thou esteem st the ornament of life,\\nAnd live a coward in thine own esteem\\nLetting I dare not wait upon I would,\\nLike the poor cat i the adage V\\nand so on, throughout the speech.\\nPrecisely in this spirit does Jezebel address Ahab Dost thou\\nnow govern the kingdom of Israel Arise, and eat bread, and let\\nthine heart be merry I will give thee the vineyard of JNaboth the\\nIsraelite. So she wrote letters in Ahab s name, and sealed them\\nwith his seal, and sent the letters unto the elders, and to the nobles\\nthat were in his city, dwelling with Naboth and she wrote in the\\nletters, saying, Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth on high among the\\npeople and set two men, sons of Belial, before him, and bear wit-\\nness against him, saying, Thou didst blaspheme God and the king\\nand then carry him out, and stone him, that he may die. The\\ntwo monarchs resemble each other in their closing scenes. As\\ndangers increase and the hope of repulsing his enemies diminishes,\\nMacbeth clings with desperate faith to the words of those who pal-\\ntered with him in a double sense and Ahab, seduced by false pro-\\nphets, goes up against Ramoth-Gilead, where destruction awaits him.\\nThe phrensy with which the former receives the messengers who bring\\ntidings of the enemy s approach, corresponds with the hatred which\\nthe latter expresses for Micaiah, the true prophet, who did not pro-\\nphesy good concerning him, but evil. Ahab and Macbeth resemble\\neach other also in the brave spirit which flashes forth just before the\\nend of life a last ray of kingliness in one, and a burst of old\\nknightly feeling in the other.\\nMacbeth. Til not yield\\nTo kiss the ground before young Malcolm s feet,\\nAnd to be baited by the rabble s curse,", "height": "3508", "width": "2180", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0153.jp2"}, "152": {"fulltext": "142 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nThough Birnam wood be come to Dunsinane,\\nAnd thou opposed, being of no woman born\\nYet I will try the last.\\nAnd Ahab said to his chariot man, Turn thine hand, that thou\\nmayest cany me out of the host, for I am wounded. And the battle\\nincreased that day howbeit the king of Israel stayed himself up in\\nhis chariot against the Syrians until the even and about the time\\nof the sunsetting he died/ Their queens also died in a resembling\\nspirit one, having painted her face and tired her head, is killed\\nwith scoffing on her lips the other expires without one compunc-\\ntious visiting which might prove that remembrance at last awoke\\nremorse.\\nThe marriage of the son of Jehoshaphat, King of Judah, to Ahab s\\ndaughter was productive of the most disastrous consequences to that\\nkingdom. The alliance not only brought the king of Judah into\\nperil, but his family to almost total ruin, and led his successor to\\nwalk in the way of the kings of Israel, working that which was\\nevil, and causing his people to sin. The influence of Athaliah, who\\nproved herself to possess a portion of the spirit of her mother\\nJezebel, wrought in like manner upon her son Ahaziah he also\\nwalked in the ways of the house of Ahab, for his mother was his\\ncounsellor to do wickedly. When this mother heard of the\\nmurder of her son, she resolved to reign in Judah having probably\\nbeen left in authority during the absence of Ahaziah, she now seized\\nthe crown for herself. To destroy every rival who could dispute her\\nclaims to the sovereignty, she barbarously put to death all she could\\nfind of the kingly stock, and the royal palace of Jerusalem flowed\\nwith innocent blood. For six years did her oppressive usurpation\\ncontinue, during which time the land was defiled with the worship\\nof Baal, and the temple plundered of his sacred treasures. She\\ndreamed not that any of the line of David remained to sit on the\\nthrone but the Lord had not forgotten his covenant. Secreted in\\none of the chambers of the temple, a child who had been saved by", "height": "3548", "width": "2260", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0154.jp2"}, "153": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF AHAB. 143\\nhis father s sister from the sanguinary search of Athaliah, was living\\nunder the care of the high priest. When the time was ripe for\\nrevolt, this rightful heir of the throne was exhibited by Jehoiada to\\nthe rulers and captains, previously bound by an oath to his cause\\nthe conspiracy was organized, and Joash anointed and proclaimed\\nking. Hearing the noise of the acclamations the queen-mother\\ncame into the temple, saw in the appointed place of royalty the\\nyouthful monarch, crowned, and surrounded by the princes and\\ntrumpeters, and heard the joyful shouts and the martial music that\\nhailed his accession. She rent her clothes and cried Treason\\ntreason but no guards appeared to defend her pretensions. She\\nshowed the spirit of her haughty mother in venturing alone into the\\nmidst of the military force, as if expecting that the majesty of her\\npresence could put down rebellion she shared her fate, also, and\\ndoubtless met her death with the same indomitable resolution, the\\noffspring of pride. The wicked have no bands in their death.\\nThe exhibition of wickedness in high places, as viewed in the\\nfamily of this king of Israel, with the punishment which overtook its\\nperpetrators, forms one of the most instructive lessons in history.\\nWe may see here how the absence of all religious principle made\\nroom for the introduction of selfish avarice and ambition, which\\nbecame more and more insatiate of dominion. Idolatrous worship\\npaved the way for the other evils under which the land lay ruined,\\ntill a bloody deliverance was wrought. Jezebel, the stronger spirit,\\nhad the mastery, and led her husband into crimes he was too\\ninfirm of purpose to shun their children were worthy descendants\\nof so evil a stock, and were involved in the catastrophe which over-\\ntook them. There are many examples like this, but few in which\\nthe relations of cause and effect may be so clearly and impressively\\ntraced.", "height": "3504", "width": "2156", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0155.jp2"}, "154": {"fulltext": "XVI.\\nTHE WIDOW OF SAREPTA.\\nBY REV. WILLIAM MARTIN.\\nHospitality, so positively enjoined upon us in the New Testa-\\nment, is also by very striking examples set before us for imitation\\nin the Old. It seems, indeed, to have been one of the primitive\\nvirtues of an age when morals were defective, because Christianity,\\nwith its refining, elevating principles, had not been sufficiently\\ndeveloped to make the man of God perfect in every good work.\\nThis beautiful Christian obligation of hospitality seems from the first\\nto have been perfectly appreciated and acted upon. In no instance\\nhave we it more impressively and thrillingly illustrated than in the\\nheart-stirring narrative of the widow of Sarepta.\\nHow strangely and yet how beautifulty is the Gospel in its pro-\\nvisions contrasted with the narrow-mindedness of selfish man The\\nJews believed salvation confined to the seed of Abraham according\\nto the flesh, and, consequently, that the covenanted mercies of God\\ncould extend to none else but Jesus, with a happy reference to\\ntheir own accredited Scriptures, shows at once the fallacy of such a\\nnotion. But I tell you, of a truth, many widows were in Israel in\\nthe days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six\\nmonths, when great famine was throughout all the land But unto\\nnone of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta, a city of Sidon,\\nunto a woman that was a widow. Sarepta was one of the cities\\nbelonging to Sidon, and hence the widow in question was a Sidonian,\\nand not of the children of Abraham yet God sent the prophet to\\nher.\\nFrom the time of the revolt of the ten tribes under Jeroboam,\\n144", "height": "3548", "width": "2256", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0156.jp2"}, "155": {"fulltext": "THE WIDOW OF SAREPTA. 145\\nthe kings of Israel had been, without one solitary exception, evil\\nmen. In their folly and wickedness they grew worse and worse,\\nuntil Ahab married Jezebel, the daughter of the king of Sidon, who\\nintroduced the public worship of Baal, Ashtarte, and other Pheni-\\ncian deities. Thus idolatry and corruption prevailed to such an\\nextent that God, in anger, commissioned his servant Elijah to\\nannounce a severe and protracted famine. This famine, we are told\\nin the New Testament, continued three years and six months. But\\nGod, ever mindful of those who fear Him, commanded Elijah to\\nsecrete himself in a cave by the brook Cherith, where he was fed\\nby the ravens which brought him bread and flesh in the morning,\\nand bread and flesh in the evening. Thus he was sustained until\\nthe brook dried up. He then went, at the bidding of God, to the\\ncountry of the Sidonians, and when he came to the city of\\nZarephath, or Sarepta, he met a widow woman at the gate. Of\\nthis woman God had spoken to the prophet while yet at the brook\\nCherith, saying, Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to\\nZidon, and dwell there behold, I have commanded a widow\\nwoman there to sustain thee.\\nWe are introduced to the Widow of Sarepta under circumstances\\nof peculiar interest. She, in common with all the inhabitants of\\nher country, had suffered from the famine. She had seen her little\\nstore of provisions gradually diminishing, without the most distant\\nprospect of its being replenished, until it was reduced to a mere\\nhandful of meal and a little oil that used, and the entire stock\\nwould be exhausted. This woman was a mother she had one\\nonly child, a son, in whom all the affections of her fond heart cen-\\ntred. With what anguish on his account must she have watched\\nthe approach of utter destitution with what despair must she have\\nseen at last that the little all which remained could furnish but one\\nmore scant repast, after which both she and her son must die\\nHow heart-rending the thought that she must see her beloved child\\nperish, unable to relieve his sufferings or worse, if possible, that\\n7", "height": "3496", "width": "2188", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0157.jp2"}, "156": {"fulltext": "146 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE,\\nshe might die first, and leave him to suffer and die alone The\\nhour so long dreaded has at last arrived. She goes to procure fuel,\\nbut at the gate she is accosted by a stranger a man of rough and\\nforbidding exterior, who bids her bring him a drink of water. She\\nhastens to comply with his request but what must have been her\\nastonishment and grief when he added, Bring me, I pray thee, a\\nmorsel of bread in thine hand Who, she asks herself, can\\nthis strange, rough, wild-looking man be Can he mean to take\\nadvantage of my helplessness Is he a stranger in the country,\\nwho knows not the miserable straits to which we are reduced I\\nwill tell him all perhaps my distress may move his compassion,\\nand he will spare me. And she said As the Lord thy God\\nliveth, I have not a cake, but a handful of meal in a barrel, and a\\nlittle oil in a erase and behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I\\nmay go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it and\\ndie. And Elijah said unto her, Fear not go and do as thou\\nhast said but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto\\nme, and after make for thee and thy son. For thus saith the Lord\\nGod of Israel The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the\\ncruse of oil fail, until the day that the Lord sendeth rain upon the\\nearth.\\nMark here the trial not only is this woman out of her little\\nstore required to share with the stranger, but she is bidden to make\\nhim the first cake, and then make for herself and her son. Look at\\nthe group by the poor widow s humble dwelling. There is the\\nlittle boy at play, unconscious of impending starvation the mother\\nwith pale and saddened countenance, and the stranger, weary with\\nhis journey, and faint with hunger. He has no claims of kindred\\nor even of country upon her she has never seen nor heard of him\\nbefore he is of a country whose laws, customs, and religion are\\nstrange to her yet he throws himself upon her hospitality, and\\nasks at her hand the bread she is about to prepare as a last\\nmorsel for her child. Must she give under such circumstances?", "height": "3520", "width": "2232", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0158.jp2"}, "157": {"fulltext": "THE WIDOW OF SAREPTA. 14*7\\nDoes charity or religion demand it of her While she hesitates,\\nthe stranger gives the promise with the sanction of Thus saith the\\nLord God of Israel concerning the oil and the meal. She com-\\nplies with the apparently unreasonable and severe request she\\ntakes out the meal and oil with trembling hands, and prepares the\\ncake. What was her moving principle Was it faith faith in the\\npromise of a stranger, made in the name of his God If so, what\\na striking and beautiful example of faith was hers, exhibited under\\nthe circumstances of her situation If she acted in obedience to\\nwhat she conceived the imperious demands of hospitality, how\\nnoble was her disinterestedness and self-denying kindness\\nThe Man of God is received into the widow s house becomes a\\nmember of her little family, and partakes with her and her child,\\nof the daily supplies furnished from that barrel of meal, and that\\ncruse of oil. The drought continues the famine increases the\\nwater streams dry up the earth is parched, and vegetation ceases\\nthroughout the land yet still the handful of meal wastes not, and\\nthe oil fails not. The woman s faith has become established by daily\\nexperience of the fulfilment of the Divine promise, and her doubts and\\nfears have gradually given place to abiding confidence and cheerful\\nhope, hope that by the blessing of the God of Israel upon her\\nstore, her wants may be supplied until the famine is over, and the\\nearth shall again be made fruitful by plentiful showers, causing it to\\nyield abundantly seed to the sower and bread to the eater. But\\nwhile the fond mother thus dreams of a happy future, looking for-\\nward to the time when her son shall become the stay and comfort\\nof her declining years, the opening bud is nipped, and her cherished\\nhopes blighted as in a moment. The object of all her anxieties and\\nanticipations, her hopes and joys, is stricken down by the destroyer,\\nDeath. What pen could portray the agony, the despair of that\\nlone widow, as she lays down from her arms that lovely boy, now\\ncold and lifeless imprints a kiss upon the marble brow, and gazes\\non the pale form as the last object that made earth desirable How", "height": "3512", "width": "2180", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0159.jp2"}, "158": {"fulltext": "148 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nimploringly she appeals to the man of God, perhaps with some faint\\nhope that he may aid her in this extreme distress The scene is one\\nof painful interest. The bereaved mother refuses to be comforted\\nthe man of God stands calm and thoughtful, his soul moved with\\nsympathy for the suffering mourner. Elijah took the child out of\\nher bosom, and carried him up into his own room, and laid him\\nupon his own bed. What were the mother s feelings when she saw\\nthe holy man retire to his room with her lifeless child in his arms\\nwhat hope sprang to life, to be crushed the next moment by doubt\\nand despair But Elijah cried unto the Lord, and said, Oh, Lord,\\nmy God, hast thou also brought evil upon the widow with whom\\nI sojourn, by slaying her son And he stretched himself upon\\nthe child three times, and cried unto the Lord, and said, Oh, Lord,\\nmy God, I pray thee, let this child s soul come into him again.\\nThe Lord heard the prayer of his servant, and restored the child to\\nlife and Elijah brought him to his mother, and said, See, thy son\\nliveth After this wonderful event, the widow, her son, and her\\nguest, continued to dwell happily together, sustained by the special\\nprovidence of God, until the day that it pleased Him to replenish\\nthe earth with refreshing; showers and fruitful seasons.\\nWithout doubt, one of the most beautiful and attractive phases\\nof Christian charity is hospitality. Often it is found in higher and\\nmore frequent exercise among the poor than the rich. Come,\\nshare my crust, says the poor man, with a free heart, ungrudgingly\\nbut to share the last crust with a stranger this was the unparalleled\\nhospitality of the poor widow of Sarepta. Twice blessed was that\\ncharity to her. Be given to hospitality. When I was a stranger\\nye took me in. Be not forgetful to entertain strangers, for there-\\nby some have entertained angels unawares. And whosoever\\nshall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water\\nonly, in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no\\nwise lose his reward. Widow of Sarepta surely thou hadst over-\\npayment, and shall we not all What investment is like that", "height": "3548", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0160.jp2"}, "159": {"fulltext": "THE WIDOW OF SAREPTA. 149\\ncharity which covereth a multitude of sins! What venture\\nlike the heart s trust in these and such like promises He that\\nsoweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. He that hath pity\\non the poor lendeth to the Lord and that which he hath given\\nwill He pay him again. God is not unrighteous to forget your\\nwork and labor of love, which ye have showed toward his name, in\\nthat ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.", "height": "3508", "width": "2224", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0161.jp2"}, "160": {"fulltext": "XVII.\\nTHE HOLY FAMILY.\\nBY REV. B. M. PALMER.\\nAmong the family groups presented to our view in the Scriptures,\\nnot one is contemplated with such various and intense interest as\\nthe Holy family. This title itself, by which, from immemorial\\nantiquity, it has been separated from all the families of the earth,\\nhedges it round with associations the most sacred, and awakens\\nreflections which easily glide into frames of devotion. Pious families\\nhave, in every age, been embraced within the covenant of God, the\\nindividual members of which we may call holy, in a relative sense\\nindeed, many of these have been drawn by inspired men, in fuller\\nproportions than it seemed good to the Spirit to draw for us the\\ncharacters either of Mary or of Joseph. Certainly, the elements of\\npiety have not been so nicely analysed in these, nor has such a\\ndiversified Christian experience been assigned to them, as the Scrip-\\ntures attribute to many of the early patriarchs, or to some of the\\nkings of Judah. However distinguished as the parents and protectors\\nof the infant Jesus, they, no less than others, were sinners saved by\\ngrace, were justified by a righteousness imputed to them, and\\nexperienced the same washing of regeneration and renewing of\\nthe Holy Ghost. They, like others, rejoiced in God their\\nSaviour, and were in no other sense holy than as they were\\nwashed, sanctified, and justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and\\nby the spirit of our God. Their holiness was like the light of\\nfire mixed with smoke an infused holiness accompanied with a\\nnatural taint. It is not, therefore, for their supereminent piety,\\nhowever great, that the common consent of ages has applied to this\\n150", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0162.jp2"}, "161": {"fulltext": "THE HOLY FAMILY. 151\\nfamily the epithet, holy. But within the inclosure of this domestic\\ncircle there is a being who, considered in his human nature alone,\\nlifts our minds to the most elevated meditations. Born of a woman,\\nwith all the corporeal and intellectual endowments of a real man,\\nwith all those sympathies and affections which bind our race into a\\ncommon brotherhood, he was yet born free from that taint which iii\\nits fountain head corrupted the very nature of mankind. He is the\\nonly human being to whom the epithet, holy, may be applied in its\\nabsolute sense. Of him alone the record runs that he was holy,\\nharmless, undefiled, and separate from sinners. Poetry has vainly\\nemployed its richest fancy to conceive the idea of a perfect man, and\\nphilosophy has refined its nicest distinctions to express the attributes\\nwhich should adorn him. And if, while mourning amid the ruins\\nof our fallen nature, the revelation were for the first time made, that\\nsuch a being should actually exist, and that in accomplishing the\\nusual stages of infancy, youth, and manhood, he should exhibit the\\npattern of a blameless life, with what acclamation would this promise\\nbe received with what admiration would all eyes turn upon this\\nspectacle with what critical inspection would his character and\\nwalk be surveyed yet it is this spectacle which is viewed in the babe\\nof Bethlehem. During thirty years he passes through all the\\nfortunes of human life without a stain exercises affections the most\\nardent, without the alloy of human passion cherishes sympathies the\\nmost keen, without the imperfection of irritability and works actions\\nthe most notable, in which are mingled equally the elements of good-\\nness and of power.\\nThis holy being, too, against whom the law brings not a single\\nchallenge, undergoes all the pain and sorrow which form in part the\\npenalty of sin and these sufferings, which yet avenge no transgres-\\nsions of his own, invest him with a most affectino- interest. Born in\\na lowly condition, he proves all the mortifications of obscurity with-\\nout the poor shelter which even birds and foxes, under a benignant\\nprovidence, enjoy, he knows the pain of dependence lonely amidst", "height": "3500", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0163.jp2"}, "162": {"fulltext": "152 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE,\\nthe moving crowd, death snatches away the few T friends of his heart,\\nand he feels the pang of bereavement his pure ears are filled with\\nthe coarsest invectives of brutal foes and his guileless spirit is\\npierced with sharp and malignant suspicions. It was his bitter lot to\\nendure the kiss of the betrayer, the desertion of timid friends, and\\nthe savage insults of enemies who gloat over the agonies of his dying\\nhour. We speak not now of the supernatural horrors which hung\\naround his soul when he made that soul an offering for sin.\\nViewing him alone in his natural relations, we trace his path of\\nsuffering, reproach, and want, till it loses itself in the awful gloom of\\nthe crucifixion. At every step we recognise the man of sorrows\\nhis acquaintance with grief has marred his form more than the\\nsons of men. Nature, blunted and selfish as she is, bids us weep\\nover the sufferings which are yet the due reward of sin but what\\nsympathy is felt to be adequate when the sufferer is sinless, and\\nbears in his bleeding bosom the broken points of a thousand shafts\\naimed to avenge the sins of others\\nAnother feature, attaching the eye of the beholder to this group\\nas to none beside, is found in the singular constitution of this house-\\nhold. In every other, from the very order in which families are\\ndeveloped, the parents must be the central figures. Their offspring,\\nhowever they may afterwards eclipse them, are, in the beginnings of\\ntheir history, wrapped within those from whom, in their fortunes and\\nin their character, they are developed. They become important only\\nas they enlarge, and in the lapse of time push their ancestors from\\nthe stage, to occupy their place. But in this group, the child is the\\ncommanding figure, and from first to last concentrates upon himself\\nthe gaze of all beholders. Nor is the tie the same which binds him\\nto his parents. To Joseph he sustains only the relation of an adopted\\nson no blood of his flows through his veins he sprang not from his\\nloins. While Joseph bends with intensest devotion over his infant\\nform, it is with the love of a guardian, and in fulfilment of a trust\\ncommitted in such a way as most fully to engage the affections of his", "height": "3548", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0164.jp2"}, "163": {"fulltext": "THE HOLY FAMILY. J53\\nupright heart. And who shall define the tie which binds thi\u00c2\u00bb child\\nto his virgin mother Supematurally created from her substance\\nby the power of the Holy Ghost, he is born as no other being besides\\nhimself was ever born. Forasmuch as the children, whom he\\ncame to redeem, were partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself\\nlikewise took part of the same. He must not only possess a human\\nnature like theirs, which might have been had he been created out\\nof nothing, or from the dust, as Adam was but that he may be near\\nof kin to them, and so a legal ground exist for the imputation of his\\nrighteousness, he must have that very nature as it is derived from\\nAdam and is propagated to himself. While, however, this human\\nnature must thus descend to him in the way of inheritance, the\\nnecessities of his redeeming work require that the curse pronounced\\nupon the first Adam, entailed upon all his natural seed, and conveyed\\nto them through the channel of ordinary generation, should be\\nstopped from him. His extraordinary conception in the womb of a\\nvirgin, and the immediate creation of his human nature by the Holy\\nGhost, cut off this entail, free him from the taint of original sin, save\\nhim from the condemnation of the race to which he belongs, and\\npresent human nature in him, spotless, as at the creation. This\\nfamily, then, is seen to be constituted in a way peculiar to itself. A\\nvirgin, who had never known obedience to the law of her husband,\\nbecomes a mother. While absorbed in her maiden meditations, a\\ncelestial visitor appears to her, with this imposing announcement\\nThe Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the High-\\nest shall overshadow thee therefore, also, that holy thing that shall\\nbe born of thee, shall be called the Son of God. The third person\\nof the adorable Godhead, who, at the first, with his forming and per-\\nfecting power, brooded over chaos, overshadows her, by a creative,\\nnot a generative act, impregnates her womb, refines and supernatu-\\nralizes her substance, and transforms it into that of a man. In this\\nway did Christ emphatically become the seed of the woman, and\\nin this way was a body prepared for him who was to be found\\n7*", "height": "3496", "width": "2224", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0165.jp2"}, "164": {"fulltext": "154 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nin fashion as a man. Thus singular were the ties of relationship\\nbetween the members of this household. The child gives denomina-\\ntion to the family. He is related to the father only by the love of\\nadoption, and through the exercise of a special guardianship he is\\nrelated to the mother by no instrumental generation, but by imme-\\ndiate and divine creation from her virgin flesh.\\nBut let us draw nearer to the canvas and take a closer view.\\nThe eye brightens and the bosom heaves, as greater mysteries are\\nseen lurking within the deeper shadows of the picture. Who is this\\nsupernatural being, for whom so miraculous a birth is provided\\nAnd why does Mary mingle Avith her maternal caresses that look of\\ndeep devotion and adoring worship Hear, Heavens, and give\\near, Earth The great mystery of Godliness, God manifest in\\nthe flesh, is here revealed The stupendous truth must be ad-\\nmitted to the agitated bosom this babe is the incarnate deity\\nThe word was made flesh and dwelt amongst us, and we beheld\\nhis glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and\\ntruth.\\nThe myths and legends which form the oracles of Pagan\\nantiquity, universally recognise God s conversableness with man, and\\ngive dim notices of his incarnation upon earth. Did human wit\\nfirst contrive this doctrine, and ingenious priestcraft fit it to the\\nworship of men Did human imagination, prolific of images and in\\ndreaming phrensy, first conceive the idea that God should be in\\nhuman form Does not the incarnation, like all the great truths of\\nGod, rather lie quite beyond the range of human thought And\\ndid finite mind ever so far wander from its orbit as to light upon a\\ndiscovery like this Could the doctrine, even in its crudest form,\\nfind a place in the universal creed of men, among nations barbarous\\nand polished, if it were not the distorted image of a revealed truth\\nThere are some thoughts which so address themselves to the\\nreligious susceptibilities of men, that once cherished they can never\\ndie away from the mind. They may be overlaid, obscured, per-", "height": "3548", "width": "2248", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0166.jp2"}, "165": {"fulltext": "THE HOLY FAMILY. 155\\nverted but never forgotten nor erased. They seem to enter into\\nthe very fabric of man s religious nature, and form a part of its\\ntexture. Thus, for example, while the glory of the incorruptible\\nGod has been changed into an image made like to corruptible man, and\\nto birds, and four-footed beasts, and creeping things, yet the great\\nidea itself of God s existence has never been eradicated. The incar-\\nnation is a truth exactly of this nature. Originally revealed from\\nheaven, it became indissolubly interwoven with all the religious\\nassociations and emotions of mankind. Broken off from the system\\nto which it belongs, it has intermingled itself, fragmentary and dis-\\ntorted, with all the superstitions of men. Refracted by the medium\\nof ignorance and error through which it has passed, and grotesque\\nwith the silly additions which the credulous have imposed, it is,\\nnotwithstanding, the archetype of all those fables which, as they\\ndescribe God s commerce with mankind, contain the essence of all\\nheathen religion.\\nThe Scriptures teach that as God mysteriously subsists in three\\ndistinct persons, the second of these, being equally related to the\\nFather and the Spirit, becomes the revealer of the Deity to sinful\\nmen. He it is who conversed with Adam in the garden of Eden.\\nHe it is who appeared as a friend to Abraham and gave the\\npromise of a numerous seed. He it is who in a pillar of cloud and\\na pillar of fire led forth that seed from the house of Egyptian\\nbondage. He it is who with imposing majesty gave forth the law\\nfrom Sinai. And now that the fulness of time has come, He\\nmakes that larger manifestation of which all these were only the\\ntypes. As the purposes of God ripen to their consummation, the\\nuncreated Son leaps from the throne which as Jehovah s fellow he\\nhad always shared, leaves the bosom in which he had always dwelt,\\nand speeds to earth exclaiming, Lo I come in the volume of the\\nbook it is written of me. He strips himself of all celestial glories,\\nlays aside the garments of praise, unwraps his majesty and puts it\\nby, unclothes himself of light, empties himself of all grandeur, and", "height": "3512", "width": "2216", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0167.jp2"}, "166": {"fulltext": "156 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nbecomes the babe whom we discover upon the knee of Mary.\\nThis sublime condescension illustrates itself yet further. He comes\\nnot only to be a man, but a man of sorrows. As though in type\\nthat He and his people should be pilgrims and strangers upon earth,\\nhe is bom by the wayside and upon a journey. As though in token\\nthat He and His should have no home but in Heaven, he is crowded\\nfrom the inn, and, unhoused, seeks a shelter even from beasts of labor.\\nOminous of the humiliation of the grave in which his life must end,\\nthat life begins in the humiliation of the stall and the manger. Yet\\neven now signs of the true divinity are not wanting. A shining\\nstar is set in the heavens from which he came, to mark the spot of\\nhis earthly nativity. While wrapped in swaddling clothes and\\nlying in the manger, wise men from the East bring their gifts of\\ngold, frankincense, and myrrh prophetic of the time when under\\nthe gospel the kingdoms of this world should become the king-\\ndoms of our Lord and of his Christ. Myriads of the Heavenly\\nhost, with the glory of God shining about them, hover over the\\nwatchful shepherds and sing glory to God in the Highest, and on\\nearth peace and good-will to men the first note, it may be, of that\\nchorus with which they echo the song of the Church redeemed and\\ntriumphant in Heaven, Amen blessing and glory and wisdom and\\nthanksgiving and honor and power and might be unto our God\\nfor ever and ever.\\nThe being thus marvellously combining two dissimilar natures in\\nhis mysterious person, is not more singularly united to the race of\\nmen, than he is associated with their history. For him and for his\\nwork of redemption this world was made. In relation to his king-\\ndom, all the kingdoms of the earth have waxed and waned. Little\\nas the wise and prudent of our age may reck of it, the proud\\nempires of the present and of the future, no less than of the past,\\nexist only because of their relations to the despised Nazarene and\\nhis humble church. Upon this family, holding in its embrace the\\nmanifested God, all the lines of history converge. The light of", "height": "3548", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0168.jp2"}, "167": {"fulltext": "THE HOLY FAMILY. 157\\nanother world the eye of faith may even in this shall surely dis-\\ncover all facts, of all times, in all nations, revolving around the\\ntragedy of the Crucifixion as the great central fact of all history, and\\ntaking complexion from it. All the predictions and promises of\\nGod, moreover, which spanned the arch of four thousand years,\\nterminated upon this babe of the manger. And from this new\\nsalient point, they spring forth to span with the rainbow of hope\\nother thousands of years, terminating upon his second advent, when\\nhe shall come without sin unto salvation, to be glorified in his\\nsaints, and to be admired in them that believe.\\nThese, then, are the associations called up by that suggestive title\\nthe Holy Family. The specimen of perfect human nature, never\\nwitnessed but in the man Christ Jesus the painful sufferings of\\nHim who drank the wormwood and the gall in place of the guilty\\nand condemned the supernatural conception of this Virgin s Son\\nthe incarnation of the Deity in him and the concentration upon\\nhim of all the lines of History and Prophecy these are the features\\nwhich give expression to the painting before us. To expand these\\npoints would indeed conduct the reader over a large tract of serious\\nand profitable thought, but would lead him too far from the one\\npractical design of this Gallery of Portraits, which is to illustrate the\\ntrue family life as grounded in religion. With these three figures\\nsketched before us, we may return to the domestic relations of the\\ngroup and deduce the lessons which they may offer.\\nThe first of these lessons is, that Christ has sanctified a life of\\nholiness and labor by his voluntary and patient endurance of it.\\nThe inequalities of social condition, arising from the partial distribu-\\ntion which Providence has made of worldly good, have been bitterly\\nbewailed as an unmitigated evil. In every age, Socialism has pro-\\njected her theories to reduce the fortunes of men to a uniform\\nstandard. The ferocious spirit of Agrarianism, against which one\\ngeneration does battle and hopes to have buried for ever, experiences\\nin the next a fearful resurrection. It lays, like Samson, the hand", "height": "3504", "width": "2216", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0169.jp2"}, "168": {"fulltext": "158 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE LltiLE.\\nof violence upon the pillars of the state and would shake society\\ninto ruins that it may enjoy a level prospect even though it should\\nbe the level of a universal wreck. What the state of the world\\nwould have been if man had never fallen whether those striking\\ninequalities would have existed, if the earth, unfettered by the curse,\\nhad spontaneously produced her fruits, or had yielded them to easy\\nculture it is more than idle now to conjecture. But since the dis-\\npensation of God has been otherwise, it is never useless to oppose\\nthe sanctions of religion to that species of savage cannibalism which\\nleads the poor and hungry, with all the rapacity of recklessness or\\ndespair, to devour the noble and the great. While, on the one\\nhand, the pressure of absolute want is an evil both to him who\\nendures it and to the state upon whose body this ulcer grows, against\\nwhich no argument avails still, on the other hand, it can be shown\\nto be better for the interests of the world at large, that the masses\\nshould not be independent of honest daily labor for their subsist-\\nence. Wealth brings with it that measure of independence, and\\nnaturally so insulates its possessors, that, were it not confined to few\\nhands, it is hard to see but that society must be speedily disintegrated.\\nBut that reciprocal dependence which the working classes must ever\\nfeel, and which, within certain limits, is even an element of human\\nhappiness, binds society together with cords of sympathy and\\ninterest which are stronger than bands of iron. Passing by, how-\\never, these general reflections, the problem is easily solved why God,\\nfor the most part, secludes the heirs of salvation in obscurity, and\\nsubjects them to a discipline of toil. Obscurity shields them from\\nmany snares and hurtful lusts which necessarily beset those who\\noccupy positions of wealth and power. Labor places a wholesome\\ncheck upon the impatient and turbulent spirit, which must be tamed\\nand made obedient to the law of Christ. Dependence upon God\\nfor their daily food exercises that trustful faith which embraces a\\ndivine Redeemer in the promises of the Gospel. The constant toil\\nof every day hardens the Christian and adapts him to evangelical", "height": "3500", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0170.jp2"}, "169": {"fulltext": "THE HOLY FAMILY. 159\\nlabors and the intercourse with man, which business generates,\\nopens wide the door for the entrance of their labors. But though\\nsense were blind, and reason could discover none of these advantages\\naccruing, it checks the murmur dropping from one s lips to remem-\\nber Christ as standing with us in the same lowly sphere. Every\\nspot through the whole dark passage-way of life, upon which the\\nSaviour s foot was pressed, is sanctified to us. Even the grave is\\ndeprived of its appalling associations by his abode in the sepulchre.\\nSince Jesus hath lain there, we dread not its gloom. If our\\nglorious Head hath borne down into its gloomy vaults his own cove-\\nnant of love and placed it as the pillow upon which the sleeping\\nChristian may rest, the grave is robbed of its terrors, and death\\nitself is sanctified. Why, upon the same principles, should not\\npoverty, reproach, obscurity, and labor be sanctified to the humble\\nChristian, when his blessed Master passes by the palaces of Csesar\\nand chooses an humble carpenter of Galilee for his reputed father,\\nand an humble virgin from the fallen house of David for his veritable\\nmother\\nAttention should next be drawn to the depth of character evinced\\nby Mary, and in no small degree by Joseph. The profane worship\\nwhich Papists render to the Mother of our Lord has so thoroughly\\ndisgusted Protestants, that she is in danger of beino* defrauded of\\nthe credit due her case as a pious woman. Her character will well\\nrepay a moment s study to those who wish to know what elements\\nenter into family happiness. Scan her then at the moment her\\nprivacy is first broken by the angel Gabriel. Startling as his\\nannouncement is, she does not reel beneath it. Troubled at the\\nmanner of his saluta ^n, she observes a discreet silence, and casts\\nin her mind what it shoutu. mean. This single ray of historic lio-ht\\ndaguerreotypes her character before us with imperishable distinct-\\nness. What habits of patient meditation and inward self-communion\\ndoes this perfect self-control reveal When the message comes to\\nbe unfolded, still she staggers not. True, reason could bring no", "height": "3512", "width": "2220", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0171.jp2"}, "170": {"fulltext": "1(30 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nprecedents from human annals to justify the astounding declaration.\\nThe eye of sense could discover no law by which this event should be\\naccomplished, and her innocence of marriage would seem an inter-\\ndict upon the promise. True, a calculating, selfish prudence could\\nsuggest the cold suspicions which might alienate the love of Joseph.\\nHer womanly reserve might shrink from the prospect of the assem-\\nbled judges and from the bitter water of jealousy or her natural\\nlove of life might recoil from a martyrdom to chastity by the aveng-\\ning stones of an infuriated and insulting populace. But nothing of\\nall this. If a vivid fancy caused these hideous images to defile\\nbefore her mind, she had the nerve to banish or suppress them.\\nWhen the angel places the issue upon the veracity and power of\\nGod, her faith yields a ready acquiescence, and with submissive will\\nshe replies, Behold the handmaid of the Lord be it unto me\\naccording to thy word. Immediately upon his departure, with\\nexpanding heart she hies to the mountain home of her cousin,\\nElizabeth concerning whom the angel had testified that she was in\\nlike manner favored of the Lord. The object of this visit and the\\naffecting nature of their conference may be inferred from their\\nimpassioned salutations Blessed art thou among women, and\\nblessed is the fruit of thy womb To which Mary responds, My\\nsoul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my\\nSaviour for he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden,\\nfor behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.\\nWe have no space for criticism upon the sacred canticle of which\\nthese words are the introduction. One observation, however, must\\nnot be withheld it reveals a strength of emotion and a compass of\\nfeeling commensurate with the deep self-communion already noticed.\\nIt is conclusive that the moderation and calm tranquillity of Mary\\nunder the visit of the angel were by no means due to passiveness of\\ntemper and a cold phlegmatic mould that can never fire, even\\nthouo-h the torch be from the altar and throne of God. Her whole\\nhistory goes to show that, as in the case of others, so in hers, the", "height": "3544", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0172.jp2"}, "171": {"fulltext": "THE HOLY FAMILY. 161\\nuniversal law obtains, that what was kept and pondered in the\\nheart was the aliment of the deep emotion, which, like a smothered\\nflame, continually burst forth in the life.\\nThis depth of character is due to the power of her living faith in\\nthe providence and covenant of God. Mary is a beautiful example\\nof the piety which breathed and burned in the ancient Hebrew\\nChurch, when the faith of God s people fed upon the promise of a\\ncoming Messiah. Among the predictions of this event, that most\\nremarkable of all which foretold his birth of a virgin, and gave to\\nhim the descriptive name, Immanuel, had doubtless filled the mind\\nof Mary, and in a measure prepared her for the startling revelations\\nof the angel. With all those who, like Simeon and Anna, waited\\nfor the consolation of Israel, her faith was placed in a supernatural\\nProvidence, to whom all things were alike easy. It was this faith\\nthat formed the substratum of her character. Indeed the proposi-\\ntion may be made universal, there is no depth of soul in any with-\\nout the element of faith faith in something which is great and\\ngood. There must be a recognition of principles beautiful and prac-\\ntical, which shall insensibly give tone to the whole inward man.\\nThe more elevated these truths the stronger will be the faith and\\nthe more complete the ascendency over the mind and will. If the\\nprinciples be divine and such as to associate man with God, they\\nwill impart a dignity and vigor to the life which only a divine and\\ninward spring can supply. There may be genius, there may be\\nlearning, where there is little harmony or symmetry of character.\\nMen may shine above their fellows with the lustre of stars but they\\nwill prove wandering stars to whom is reserved the blackness of\\ndarkness for ever, unless faith, with its attractive and assimilatmo;\\n77 o\\npower, bind them to the great Centre of truth and goodness.\\nThe bearing of all this upon the forming of family ties will at\\nonce be seen. The family is the radix of the State, the germ of the\\nchurch, and thus the basis of every organization known among men.\\nTt is in the family that government and law first are exercised. Here", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0173.jp2"}, "172": {"fulltext": "162 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\na despotism is established sufficiently strong and absolute to break\\nthe iron will of men, whose first impulse, as seen in the youngest chil-\\ndren, is to break, away from all restraint and yet this despotism is\\ntempered in its exercise, and is guarded from above, by that natural\\naffection for his offspring, deeper than any love known to the\\nparent s heart. Men would be incapable of restraint, and the most\\nstringent, enactments would be as tow to bind their passions, if they\\nwere thrown together in the mass. But divided into these separate\\nprovinces, while yet plastic in youth, they learn subjection to author-\\nity under the mild despotism of the family. But this involves\\nimmense responsibilities, from which none may shrink who assume\\nthis supreme jurisdiction. The true ends of life, and the ordination\\nof family ties with a view to consummate those ends, must be under-\\nstood and felt. The duties of every relation must be graduated\\nupon a proper scale and all the emotions and sympathies of the\\nheart must be proportioned by that measurement. He surely should\\nnot have in trust the happiness of others, who himself, fitful and\\nmoody, swings in the gale without a mooring. He should not\\nassume to mould the mortal and immortal destinies of others, whose\\nown character is without consistency or form. He surely is not\\ncompetent to guide others, who is not himself well poised, and turns\\nnot freely on the pivot through the entire circle of human duty.\\nWe cease to wonder at domestic broils, and the insurrection of tur-\\nbulent households, when we consider the unformed and ill-adjusted\\ncharacters of those appointed to rule and guide.\\nThe passage from this trait is easy to another, the most beautiful\\nwhich can decorate the family abode the exquisite tenderness and\\naffection manifested by the parents of Jesus. Imagination can easily\\ncoin the few hints of this given in the narrative into most substantial\\nproofs. How affecting the sight of this group fleeing by night from\\nthe persecuting sword of Herod Joseph with a sturdy heart\\ngrasping his Pilgrim staff, and Mary trembling with fear over her\\nprecious burden They tread together the sands of that desert", "height": "3544", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0174.jp2"}, "173": {"fulltext": "THE HOLY FAMILY. 163\\npassed two thousand years before by their ancestors, and find a\\nrefuge in that Egypt which was once the house of bondage. How\\ndoes the mother s heart heave with the emotion of danger just\\nescaped, when the cry of the slaughtered infants of Bethlehem is\\nwafted to her ears The voice of Rachel, weeping for her children\\nbecause they are not, unseals the fountains within. Tears of sym-\\npathy for those bereft mothers tears of grateful thanksgiving for\\nthe safety of her own mingle with the tears shed by maternal\\nlove over her sleeping babe. Again the wilderness is recrossed\\nbut parental love, ever suspicious of- evil and quick to scent the\\napproach of danger, turns their feet from the territory of Archelaus\\nto the parts of Galilee. Years roll by, and these pious parents\\nmingle with the throng of worshippers at Jerusalem. With what\\naffection do they search, during three days of agony, for their lost\\nchild and how tender the remonstrance of Mary, when he is found\\nin the temple among the doctors Son, why hast thou thus dealt\\nwith us behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing.\\nLast of all, see this mother as she stands in the loveliness of widow-\\nhood before the cross of her son. Now the sword, which Simeon\\npredicted, pierces through her soul. Shall we with profane hand\\nremove the veil which inspired history has drawn over her grief\\nEven the rough affection of Peter gushed forth unrestrained at the\\nbare foresight of that cross and its impaled victim This be far from\\nthee, Lord. But the bowed and prostrate form of this poor female\\nwho shall say whether it expresses most the agon}^ of a bereaved\\nmother s heart or the deep worship of a Christian, who sees before\\nher the great Propitiation for her sins And why should this ten-\\nderness be ever banished from the domestic circle Why does God\\nsend us thus in groups through life, if not that reciprocated love\\nmay bear us the more easily over its rough places if not that the\\nhand of affection may ever wipe the fallen tear, staunch the wounds\\nof a bleeding heart, and sustain the head which droops in sorrow,\\nor in death", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0175.jp2"}, "174": {"fulltext": "164 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nWe hasten on, with the rapidity of suggestion only, to remark\\nthe filial subjection and piety of Jesus himself. We might antece-\\ndently suppose that He who was Lord of all, and who came to\\nearth only to execute the will of his Father in Heaven, how-\\never he might rightfully draw upon the service and care of\\nearthly kindred, would yet render no subjection to them.\\nBut no. He came to fill all the relations of a perfect man, and to\\nrender the exactest obedience to that law which defines them. In\\nthe brief history of his early life nothing is told us but that, under\\nhis parents fostering care, he grew and waxed strong in spirit, filled\\nwith wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him. But though\\ndistinguished by these attributes, he wanders not from the eye of\\nhis natural guardians. At the age of twelve years, inspired with a\\nprophecy of his after work, he is seen in the temple at Jerusalem,\\nteaching and confuting among the doctors. He parries the mild re-\\nbuke of his mother by as mild a reply, Why is it that ye sought\\nme Wist ye not that I must be about my Father s business or\\nas some with juster criticism understand him, Wist ye not that I\\nmust be in my Father s house that is, the Temple. Yet with this\\nclear discovery of his superiority to them, these instructive words\\nare added, he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and\\nwas subject unto them. Authority and subjection are correlative\\nterms. In the family constitution, God has made the husband the\\nhead of the wife, and the parents are united in a joint jurisdiction\\nover the children. Never can this order be subverted or neglected\\nwithout serious evils. The parents right, under God, to command,\\nand the child s obligation to obey, stand over against each other.\\nThe parent stands to the child as the appointed representative of\\nGod s dominion and the child who lifts himself against the parents\\njust commands puts himself in rebellion against the whole authority\\nof God. It is to impress this wholesome truth upon us that the\\nfifth commandment is the first with promise. Against the radicalism\\nof the times, then which would set the wife loose from the law of her", "height": "3544", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0176.jp2"}, "175": {"fulltext": "THE HOLY FAMILY. 165\\nhusband, and emancipate the child from parental control which\\nwould thus draw away the very underpinning of social order we\\noppose both the authority and example of Christ. For the law\\nwhich, as man, he honored by his most illustrious obedience, as God\\nand as Redeemer, he binds upon the conscience with* all the sanctions\\nof religion. Nor is particular subjection to parental government\\nduring the whole period of nonage all that is required. Throughout\\nlife an habitual reverence for a parent s person, which age renders\\nmore and more venerable, and a desire to reciprocate in their feeble-\\nness the care which we experienced in ours, this too is demanded by\\nthe law of nature and of God. It is among the most afFectino* inci-\\ndents of the crucifixion that, while enduring physical tortures that were\\noverwhelming, and a mental anguish which no finite mind can ever\\nfathom, Christ still had a place in his heart for his sorrowing mother.\\nWhen Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by,\\nwhom he loved, he saith to his mother, Woman, behold thy son\\nthen saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother and this remem-\\nbrance of his mother and provision for her welfare was just before\\nhe cried, it is finished, and gave up the Ghost. If the hoary\\nhead be a crown of glory, how much more in the sight of those\\nfor whose sake watchfulness and care have bleached it\\nOne last lesson from this instructive picture, before the curtain\\ndrops. Mary and Joseph act simply as trustees of the Infant Jesus.\\nMary, especially, accepts that trust in view of suspicion and obloquy\\nmost hard to bear. Through life the sword glitters before her which\\nis to pierce her soul. Nothing alleviates it, but the honor of\\nbeing the mother of the Son of Man yet in her generation this\\nhonor was the infamy of being the mother of one almost univer-\\nsally accounted an impostor. But though this trust presses against\\nher bosom with a thousand lacerating points, she never shrinks in its\\ndischarge. Neither fear nor agony withdraws her from the cross,\\nwhen bold men through the former alone had fled. In this day of\\nenlarged labors for Christ s kingdom and glory, should not all Chris-", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0177.jp2"}, "176": {"fulltext": "100 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\ntian parents especially hold their offspring under trust from God\\nMany a widowed mother is called to consecrate the stay of her fail-\\ning years to the work of the Gospel in Heathen lands. May it not\\nbe that natural affection shall sometimes plead against a sacrifice,\\nto it so severe, and be hardly silenced Yet let it be felt that the\\nbaptismal rite seals the child for God, and not for man and if\\nthe Lord hath need of him, loose him and let him go. Parents\\nare but appointed trustees is it for them to say in what way God\\nshall reclaim the trust to himself\\nThe curtain falls. What general reflection will express the whole-\\nsome impressions of the reader from this sitting How momentous\\nthe thought, that no one is alone in the world At every point we\\ntouch another, and every touch vibrates in Eternity The family is\\nthe special school which God has instituted to train us all for the\\nresponsibilities of life. In this school let the lessons of love, of\\nobedience, of self-subjection, and of labor, be well taught and be\\nwell learned. This, by the grace of God, may save from a life of\\nuselessness and injury, and from an eternity of mourning amid un-\\nprofitable regrets.", "height": "3520", "width": "2248", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0178.jp2"}, "177": {"fulltext": "XVIII.\\nTHE FAMILY OF ZACHARIAS.\\nBY CAROLINE CHESEBRO.\\nForasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth a declara-\\ntion of those things which are most surely believed among us, even\\nas they delivered them unto us, which from the beginning were eye-\\nwitnesses and ministers of the word it seemed good to me also,\\nhaving sought for a perfect understanding of all things, to write\\nunto thee, in order, beloved reader, that thou perhaps mightst be led\\nto think more earnestly of those things wherein thou hast already\\nbeen instructed. Grace be with thee, and faith from our Lord\\nJesus.\\nJudea rejoiced in unprecedented peace and prosperity. The\\nstrong will, ability, and power with which King Herod reigned over\\nthe land had attached to it an importance and splendor to which\\nit had hitherto been a strano-er.\\nFrom holding merely the governorship of a comparatively unim-\\nportant region, Galilee, that ruler came to be the independent\\nsovereign of all Palestine a king feared and disliked for the natural\\ncruelty of his disposition, and because of the rigor and sternness\\nwith which he carried forward all his plans for self-advancement,\\nand for the increased power of his kingdom beloved he w x as by\\nnone, and honored by few besides those whose greatness surpassed\\nhis own, who could afford to admire a firmness of will that had\\nnever for its object their subjugation and applauded or encouraged\\nonly by those beyond the reach of his cruelty and rapacity.\\nThe effectual aid Herod s father had rendered to Csesar had\\ngained for the Idumean the fast friendship of the great Roman\\n167", "height": "3508", "width": "2216", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0179.jp2"}, "178": {"fulltext": "168 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nEmperor and, in gratitude to Antipater, Caesar made him procura-\\ntor of Judea. Very naturally, the father, occupying* this authorita-\\ntive station, sought the advancement of his own sons and so we\\nread that Herod, one of these sons, was ere long made the governor\\nof Galilee. It was not very long before that youth, exulting in his\\npower, and desirous to win distinction, began to exhibit those quali-\\nties which, in later years more fully developed, made the glory of\\nhis dominions, and the misery and disgrace of his private history.\\nHerod did not reach his brilliant and powerful station as monarch\\nof Palestine suddenly, neither were his honors altogether unsought.\\nTo reach that height he was forced to tread a path beset on every\\nside with dangers but he trod it valiantly, and won the glory\\nwhich was to him dearer than all things else. Some time after his\\nfather had appointed him to the government of Galilee, Herod and\\nhis brother Phasael were made tetrarchs of Judea and not long after\\nthis increase of their authority, those causes were set in operation,\\nwhose ultimate end was the elevation of Herod to the throne.* An\\narmy of Parthians entered Syria and Asia Minor and one of the\\nAsmonean princes, named Antigonus, a claimant to the Judean\\nthrone, thinking it a favorable moment to assert his rights, and sup\\nposing that he would be aided in his just attempt by the Parthians.\\nmarched with an army towards Jerusalem, and forced his way into\\nthat city. A fearful slaughter followed, without any prospect of a\\nspeedy cessation of hostilities, or of victory on either side. At\\nlength Antigonus proposed to Phasael that they should proceed\\ntogether to the Parthian general, and leave with him the decision\\nas to the justice of their cause. To this plan Herod s brother\\nfoolishly consented, but soon he discovered the trap which had\\nbeen laid for him, and happily found means to convey to Herod\\nthe intelligence of the danger threatening him, with the necessity\\nof his immediate flight. The younger brother fled from one place\\nof safety to another, and finally to Rome, while the unfortunate\\nPhasael destroyed himself in the prison to which he was conducted.\\nSee Milman s Hist, of the Jews.", "height": "3548", "width": "2252", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0180.jp2"}, "179": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ZACHARIAS. 169\\nFrom that city, which he had sought as a shelter in the time of\\ndanger, high in the favor of the Roman Emperor, Herod in a short\\ntime went forth again, the king of Palestine, with the crown upon\\nhis head.\\nAfter two or three years spent in subduing his enemies and in\\nconquering Jerusalem, welcomed by none, but feared by all, the\\npeople beheld him, an alien from the house of Israel, seated on\\nthe throne, and holding over them the mastery.\\nHerod appeared before his indignant subjects in a most unfavora-\\nble light. He had to brave the prejudices, the dislike, aye, even the\\nhatred of a vast portion of his people and his hands were stained\\nwith the blood of the last of a favorite race of princes, for in the\\nsiege of Jerusalem Antigonus had been slain. But they soon found\\nit was not with one who would patiently listen to their rebukes and\\nmurmurings that they had to deal. Herod was no weak and\\ncowardly usurper, whom they could frighten from the throne. He\\nwas not the man to listen calmly and complacently to the complaints\\nof his subjects, nor one to seek patiently and hopefully to deserve\\nand win their affections.\\nFear was the prime minister he appointed to traverse the length\\nand breadth of his land, and speedily that dark power was recog-\\nnised the voices of the most indignant were hushed, and the most\\ndisaffected were effectually silenced. The destruction of the\\nSanhedrim, who had dared to withstand his authority, was a dread-\\nful example the people could not soon forget it had the effect to\\nquiet angry voices, but it was scarcely the way to win the hearts\\nof the people.\\nThe life of Herod, in common with the lives of all rulers who\\nhave unceasingly sought power, while conflicting at the same time\\nwith national and household enemies,, is marked and stained with\\nfearful crimes. The murder of the brother of his beloved wife\\nMariamne, a boy gifted with extraordinary beauty, whom he\\nappointed High Priest, and afterwards caused to be drowned, when", "height": "3504", "width": "2220", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0181.jp2"}, "180": {"fulltext": "170 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nlie beheld the undisguised interest felt in the youth by the mass of\\nthe people, who loved him because he was a descendant of the\\nAsmoneans the cruel and unmanly fear lest the magnificent\\nMariamne should, in case of his death, wed another, and the conse-\\nquent command that if he fell in battle she also should perish the\\nmurder of the grey-headed Hyrcanus, whose only sin that Herod\\nsaw fit to punish was his just claim to royalty the destroying of\\nhis beloved Mariamne, when his ears and his heart were poisoned\\nby the malicious stories framed by powerful members of his own\\nhousehold the murder of many men of high rank, instigated by\\nthat fiend in human shape, his sister Salome the destruction of the\\nbeautiful young sons of his best loved wife, at the suggestion of his\\ninfamous elder son, Antipater the subsequent treachery of that\\nwicked son, and the discovery, when too late, of the innocence of\\nthe murdered youths the rage and hate that gathered in the\\nfather s heart for the perfidious Antipater all these crimes and\\nthen consequents serve to make the private life and history of Herod\\nthe Great remarkable for unrelenting cruelty, wrong, and self-\\ninflicted torment.\\nFilled, however, and running over with guilt as was Herod s life,\\nas a man, his reign was a magnificent one, such as perhaps Pales-\\ntine had never known before.\\nAfter the fashion of the Romans, Herod expended vast sums of\\nmoney in adorning and beautifying Jerusalem. On every side\\nsplendid public works arose as if by magic the streets and all pub-\\nlic quarters of the city, with the great theatre, were adorned with\\nimages and games and sports were carried forward with a zest that\\nfilled the religious Jews with horror, and aroused in them the strong\\nsuspicion that their king had not only imitated the fashion of the\\nheathen in the adorning of his palace and city, but that he had\\nalso made room in his heart for their religion, or rather no-religion.\\nBut when they murmured and accused him of abandoning the\\nJewish faith, to do away with such suspicions, he caused immediate", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0182.jp2"}, "181": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ZACHARIAS. 1 7 1\\nand vast preparations to be made for the rebuilding of their temple.\\nWhen the work was actually begun, and carried forward with the\\nutmost zeal, their confidence in and respect for their monarch was\\nimmeasurably increased and out of this respect and confidence, love\\nfor Herod was awakened in many a heart.\\nIt was that temple which stood at last complete in its magnifi-\\ncence on the summit of Moriah, the wonder and admiration of the\\npeople, and a new source of pride to the king it was that temple\\nwherein, but a few years later, when Herod slept the sleep of death,\\nour Saviour, the divine child, stood and reasoned with the learned\\nand venerable doctors that temple around which, on a still later\\nday, the dark clouds gathered, when its sacred veil was rent in\\ntwain, while from the graves of the splendid city arose the dead and\\neven unbelievers, when they looked on the cross of Calvary, and\\nheard the dying cry of Him who was there crucified, gave in their\\nmost unwilling testimony, this is the son of God.\\nBut neither Herod s munificence, nor the zeal with which he pro-\\nmoted the prosperity of the land, nor the progress they had made\\nunder his government in the scale of nations, could silence all\\ndoubts, or quiet all fears, as to the justice of their king s reign, or\\nhis sincerity in conforming to the outward form of Judean worship.\\nAnd among those Jews who looked with minds so troubled on the\\ntendency and effects of Herod s sway, was one, who, holding ever\\nsteadfastly to the faith of his fathers, strove, in his feeble way,\\nto counteract the heathenish influences of that monarch s domination.\\nIt is pleasing to turn from the records of a life and reign of such\\nmingled crime and splendor as was Herod s, to the contemplation of\\na life so quiet and holy as that of the priest Zacharias.\\nHe was a descendant of the holy father Aaron, of the course of\\nAbia, an aged man when he is first introduced to our notice in the\\nsacred history. He had looked on many strange scenes and changes\\nin the government of his native land, both previous to and after the\\naccession of Herod and the sorrows and losses which make up so", "height": "3520", "width": "2180", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0183.jp2"}, "182": {"fulltext": "172 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\ngreat a part of the experience of all who have seen length of clays,\\nhad attended him. His hair had thinned and whitened beneath the\\nheavy, unsparing hand of time his eyes had grown dim his hands,\\naccustomed so long to holy ministrations, were trembling, for\\nmany years had robbed them of their strength but still continued\\nhe a steward of the holy mysteries, always faithful, always heartily\\nearnest in his services. Even the voice of inspiration proclaims him\\nrighteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordi-\\nnances of the Lord, blameless. But had we not this gospel\\nassurance of the excellence and peculiar worthiness of Zacharias, the\\nmere fact that through sixty or seventy years he had been suffered\\nto serve his Maker before the people, together with the knowledge\\nof the crowning honor laid upon his head by the God he had wor-\\nshipped so devotedly, were enough to prove that a man of no\\nordinary moral excellence and virtue was this priest.\\nIn the days of doubt and distrust, fear and danger, steadfastly he\\nclung to the faith of his fathers, trusting patiently in the power and\\ngoodness of his Maker when Jerusalem was filled with the horrors of\\nwar, and human life was held of no account mindful ever, even\\nwhen gazing on the splendors of Herod s court, and temple, and\\ncity, of a far higher glory and a more excellent greatness rejoicing\\nwhen it fell to his lot to go up to the city and minister in the temple\\nhappy and content when his feet turned away again from the\\nmagnificence of that service to the humbler scenes of his poor home.\\nPatient, contented, faithful, filled with love towards man, and adora-\\ntion for his God, these were some of the chief characteristics of this\\nmost estimable man.\\nIt is heart-reviving to see the young man, in the strength of his\\nyears, dedicating himself to his Heavenly Father s service separating\\nhimself from the vanity of the world, directing all his energies and\\nfaculties to the good end of teaching sinners the way of salvation\\nguiding the erring, comforting the sorrowful, and striving to arouse\\nthe slumberers; proclaiming ever the tidings of great joy, and", "height": "3548", "width": "2252", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0184.jp2"}, "183": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ZACHARIAS. 1*73\\nbeseeching those afflicted with moral leprosy, to bathe in the cool and\\ncleansing waters of His redeeming grace. But grander, nobler,\\nmore inspiriting, is the example of him who has well nigh finished a\\nlong, eventful life, having kept always the faith, never wavering,\\nnever giving way to the tempter, never failing to deliver faithfully\\nhis sacred message. Purified by the fire of worldly warfare, such spi-\\nrits are the stars which shall shine for ever in God s firmament.\\nThe life of a priest, in the olden time, bore in it but little resem-\\nblance to the lives of supineness and ease too often indulged in by\\nHis stewards and ministers of a later, would we could say, in every\\nrespect, a better day Frequently it fell in his turn to aid in\\ncarrying forward the imposing and intricate mode of worship by\\nwhich it pleased Jehovah in those days to be recognised and adored.\\nThe offering up of sacrifices, an oft-repeated form, which kept con-\\nstantly in the mind of the officiator the greater and more mightily-\\nefficient sacrifice, of which the shedding of blood was but the type or\\nsymbol the burning of the incense, whose perfumed clouds swept\\nheavenward an emblem of the prayers of the faithful, which must be\\nwholly pure, tainted with no sinful thoughts and all the multitudi-\\nnous forms and ceremonies, which in so great measure made up the\\nsolemn, awe-inspiring form of Jewish worship, were surely not\\ncalculated to induce in those who waited in the Temple, habits of\\nease or idleness.\\nDescended from a line which traced its origin, through many\\ngenerations, back to Aaron, the fraternal friend of the great lawgiver,\\nZacharias was from his earliest years instructed in all that would tend\\nto prepare him for a life of constant self-sacrifice to God. Pride, and\\nall the passions of the heart, must be early and completely subdued, or\\nhow could he hope properly to minister to the moral necessities of a\\npeople who worshipped a pride-hating God The sinful desires and\\ninclinations to indulgence natural to youth, must be held in constant\\nsubjection, or how would he dare tread the solemn courts of that\\nholy place dedicated to a spirit of purity, that would not tolerate", "height": "3512", "width": "2228", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0185.jp2"}, "184": {"fulltext": "174 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\niniquity in thought or deed A love, which no natural or worldly\\naffection must be suffered to supersede, must ever be kept alive\\nin his breast for Him who had redeemed his fathers from the land of\\ncruel bondage, who would yet redeem his people, and all nations,\\nfrom a serfdom worse than that imposed by Pharaoh a bondage of\\nthe soul to the powers of sin\\nHe had read in the books of the prophets of one whose voice, in a\\ndistant day, should be heard crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye\\nthe way of the Lord, make his paths straight. He knew that this\\nmessenger would come as the forerunner of the kino- who should be\\nmore mighty and more glorious than any who had ever reigned on\\nearth, and so it had been through all his life his prayer, that ere he\\nyet was called forth to that country from whence he might not return\\nagain, his eyes might look upon the glory of that kingdom, and\\nhimself know of the wisdom of that power.\\nIn choosing a wife, who was to be the companion of what might\\nprove a long, disastrous pilgrimage, Zacharias sought her not amid\\nthe giddy daughters of pleasure, and wealth, and ease.\\nElisabeth was descended from the same priestly line with Zacha-\\nrias. She brought to her husband no riches but the wealth of her\\nheart s affection, but that he had chosen well and wisely, how\\nconclusively their long, united, blameless life proves. Their\\nconjugal fidelity, indeed, in a day when such a branch of morals\\nwas little heeded, adds one other great attraction to the consideration\\nof the wedded life of these servants of the Most High. Elisabeth\\nalso, like her husband, had early given the best love of her soul to\\nGod, from which love, indeed, if the affections of the husband and the\\nwife make it their common centre, will ever be found diverging those\\npeaceful, joy-inspiring rays of light, which make beautiful and lovely\\nthe life of home while yet it serves as a beacon to guide them\\nthrough all the enticements of the world, safely to that rest for\\nwhich our earthly homes are given us only as a scene and an oppor-\\ntunity for preparation.", "height": "3548", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0186.jp2"}, "185": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ZACHARIAS. 175\\nZacharias and Elisabeth had lived together many years, doubt-\\nless they had their share of sorrow and affliction, but His mercy had\\nsupported them through all, because they trusted in Him. Age\\nwas casting its shadow over them, but they could look without\\nremorse, without much of regret, into their past. Peace, mutual\\naffection, trust in the one Almighty and the Ever Living, had\\ngiven the prominent features to their domestic life they could\\nlook forward beyond the ever-changing world into the future without,\\nfear for their faith was strong in God, who could make light to\\nshine for them through the valley of shadows. They had never\\nbowed before the idols of the world love of fame, of worldly\\nhonor, of riches, they knew not earth held for them no god, in\\nwhose worship they had forgotten the Invisible. Ah, we, who in\\nour times of success and prosperity are so prone to forget God, might\\nwell learn of them who clung so faithfully to their trust in His good-\\nness, during all those long years when the good they desired most\\non earth was denied them\\nThere was a blessing they had longed and prayed for, and yet it\\nhad been withheld not for their unworthmess or want of faith but\\nsimply because it was the will of their Father. When the earth\\nshould at last enfold them, and hide them in her arms away from\\nthe sunlight and life, their name would perish from the earth.\\nThere was no child in their dwelling no youth whom the good\\nfather might lead in the Temple, as long, long ago, he had been led,\\nthere to be given up to the service of Jehovah no daughter, whose\\nsoft voice and tender love might be the comfort and joy of their old\\nage no offspring, who, after finishing their life on earth in faith,\\nmight with them inherit eternal life. Their own existence had been\\na happy one how immeasurably would its happiness be brightened\\nmight there, through them and through His abounding mercy, be\\nadded, at last, one other to the innumerable throng of immortals,\\nwho dwell in the presence of His smile", "height": "3504", "width": "2224", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0187.jp2"}, "186": {"fulltext": "1*76 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nBut years passed away, and with it their great hope, and on no\\nlagging wings they beheld the hour of their departure approaching,\\nwhile resignedly they awaited the summons Death should give.\\nOne day Zacharias left his home and went up to Jerusalem, for the\\ndays of his ministration in the Temple were at hand. No sign or pro-\\nphetic thought was given him that, ere he should return to his wife, the\\ngoodness and the glory of the Lord would be manifested to him\\nthere was no conviction in the breast of Elisabeth, that when she\\nshould next listen to the voice of her husband, whose farewell words\\nnow lingered so tenderly in her heart, he would look upon their\\nchild, and say, his name is John I\\nIt was morning, and the bent figure of the old priest passed\\nthrough the crowd that gathered around the portals of the Temple,\\nand entered, slowly and reverently, the sacred place. It was his lot\\nto burn incense there that day. As he trod along the marble floor,\\nand approached the altar whereon was placed the golden candlestick,\\nfilled with the lighted candles, typical of the spiritual illumination\\nwhich he sought, there was spread through the holy temple such a\\nrich flood of light, as contrasted strangely with the flickering gleam\\ncast by the tapers upon the gilded ark and the splendid altar. In\\nthe east the sun was rising, and its first rays fell on the white,\\npolished marble columns, on the carved ceiling, on the altar with its\\ncostly gold and jewelled adornments, and on that aged form that\\nknelt so reverently in the midst of all that magnificence.\\nBut not greater was the contrast afforded in those illuminations,\\nthan that presented between the worship of God as it was, and the\\nworship of Jesus as it must be. The golden candlestick and its\\nburning tapers, how fit an emblem of the Jewish faith and the\\nJewish ceremonial of the falseness of the glow and the glitter of\\nHerod s reign Those warm and life-reviving semblances, how true\\na representation of His reign and His glory, who was coming to\\nilluminate the mental darkness of the people, who would give life to", "height": "3544", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0188.jp2"}, "187": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ZACHARIAS. 177\\na dying faith, who would awake Israel to repentance, who would\\nforgive sins\\nBut the day had not yet dawned, though it was so nigh at hand,\\nwhen that sun was to arise, and so it was meet that the outer courts\\nof the Temple should be filled with adoring worshippers it was meet\\nthat sacrifices should be offered, till the Saviour came and the great\\natonement was made that the priests should don their splendid vest-\\nments that the incense should be burned that the law of the old\\ndispensation should be obeyed, till the new and comprehensive law\\nlove towards man, and faith towards our Lord Jesus should be\\ngiven.\\nZacharias stood before the altar whence the smoke of the burnino-\\nincense rose and while the sacred cloud ascended, he prayed for\\nthe multitude standing without the Temple, for Israel, for himself.\\nOn wings swifter even than those of air that lifted up the incense,\\nhis supplication was borne to heaven and behold, as he raised\\nhis eyes towards the invisible throne whose majesty he was ador-\\ning, beside the altar stood a form of wondrous light and glory\\nWhat human thought or hand may paint an Angel imagination\\nfalters, and my voice is faint surely, the heart and the imagination\\nare weak even to conceive of all that glory and beauty which shall\\none day be revealed to us Zacharias was troubled and fear fell\\nupon him the angel came not to speak accusing words to the\\ntrembling man still it was impossible for the old priest even to look\\non one who dwelt in the immediate presence of God, without pro-\\nfound emotion.\\nBut soon the heavenly messenger s words, so full of peace, so\\nmild, and withal so glorious, assured the earth-born his aged eyes\\nwere raised and fixed in confidence upon the radiant form beside\\nhim. In breathless joy he listened to the words so full of blessed\\npremise, to which, even while they sounded in his ear, he scarcely\\ndared give credence. The terrified flutterings of his time-tried, but\\nnot time-chilled heart, ceased, when the Angel s message was\\n8*", "height": "3516", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0189.jp2"}, "188": {"fulltext": "178 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\ndelivered, and the aged man bent reverently down, as to his heart\\ncame the words of the heavenly promise,\\nFear not, Zacharias, for thy prayer is heard\\nBut even as the hopes of the fulfilment of these glad tidings grew\\nstrong in the mind of Zacharias, the thought of the improbability of\\nsuch hopes ever receiving fruition grew stronger also. Should the\\nblessing which had been so long withheld, be indeed granted when\\nold age was his companion and Death drew near Was he yet to\\nlisten to the voice of childhood in his own home, and to learn the\\nmio-ht and strength, of a father s love it seemed to him a thins;\\nimpossible. Alas how weak and imperfect is the faith of humanity,\\neven in its best development so often giving way, and leaving the\\npoor mortal without any efficient stay in life so often incomplete,\\nprofessing to believe in God, and yet not deaf to all voices that dare\\nquestion His power and Almightiness\\nWhereby shall I know this for I am an old man, and my\\nwife well stricken in years\\nI am Gabriel, was the answer to the questioning priest, that\\nstand in the presence of God, and am sent to speak unto thee, and\\nto show these glad tidings. And behold thou shalt be dumb, and\\nnot able to speak until the day when these things shall be performed,\\nbecause thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their\\nseason.\\nAnd the priest stood before the angel dumb, unable to express his\\nunbelief, even had its existence longer been possible and while the\\nglorious form of light sped away, the glad mission performed, the\\npoor, voiceless old man stood alone in the Temple, marvelling at\\nthose things he had seen and heard.\\nWithout the Temple walls stood the gathered people, old men\\nand infants, young men and maidens, the beggar and the noble, the\\nsick and diseased, and they in whose veins the tide of health and\\njoyous life was flowing. Some in prayerful attitudes, whose suppli-", "height": "3544", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0190.jp2"}, "189": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ZACHARIAS. 179\\ncations were poured forth unmindful of the crowd around some,\\nimpatient of the long delay of Zacharias, whose blessing they were\\nawaiting some, forgetful even of the sacred place where they were\\nassembled, making plans for buying and selling, or talking over the\\nlast night s revel, or indulging in gay dreams for the future. Higher\\nand higher rose the morning s sun, and still they remained there, all\\nthat multitude, awaiting the blessing. They little dreamed of the\\nextraordinary scene transpiring so near them they knew not that\\nan angel had come from heaven, and was standing within the Tem-\\nple, foretelling the nigh approach of a messenger, a heaven-sent\\nmissionary.\\nAt last came out into the porch the white-haired priest. He\\nstood before them pale and trembling, gazing upon the upturned\\nfaces lovingly, but speaking not a word. He looked older and more\\ntime-worn even than usual, but in his eyes there was a gleam of joy\\nthat was long remembered gratefully by many of the miserable on\\nwhom the kindly glance fell. He raised his hands, as though he\\nwould fain bless the multitude, but no words broke from his lips,\\nand the people said among themselves, He has had a vision in the\\ntemple. Filled with wonder and fear, they turned slowly away\\nfrom the holy place. If a lesson may be learned that we would do\\nwell never to forget, from the life-devotion of this priest to God from\\nthe confidence he had for so many years evinced that He had\\nordered His servant s life in wisdom and from the faithfulness of\\nhis connubial love, which forbade his putting aside his aged wife\\nElisabeth for a younger and a fairer woman, a practice frequent\\namong his people would it not be also wise in us to take warning\\nfrom the punishment inflicted on the old man for a momentary want\\nof faith in that power with whom all things are possible It was no\\nweighty dereliction of which Zacharias was guilty. Alas for the\\ncalculating soul that doubts, and weighs, and wavers, until the trial\\nhour of probation has passed, and the seal the seal of God s dis-\\npleasure is unalterably set", "height": "3504", "width": "2224", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0191.jp2"}, "190": {"fulltext": "180 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nAt the close of the clays of his appointed ministration in the .Tem-\\nple, Zacharias returned to his own home, which was in Hebron, as\\nis supposed, in the Hill Country. He went not back to Elisabeth\\nthe trembling, worn-out pilgrim, whose life journey was well nigh\\nfinished, whose loves and hopes were nearly weaned from earth, but\\nbearing a happy heart that was filled with a great and a God-sanc-\\ntioned hope, feeling the strength of earlier years renewed in his frame,\\nrejoicing in the great honor which was at last to attend his house,\\nand eager to communicate to his wife the wondrous message of the\\nangel. Judea had not within its borders a happier home in that\\nday than the home of Zacharias. There were loftier and more luxu-\\nrious dwelhngs, and forms that were clad in the fine linen and the\\npurple every day, but the rich and the noble never knew such grati-\\ntude and joy as was then in the hearts of that venerable pair. In\\nthe midst of their poverty how rich were they They needed no\\ncoffers of gold, no costly garments, no splendid habitation. The\\nsunshine of content made their lives beautiful the blessing, the love\\nof God, was their crown of glory and their reasonable cause for joy.\\nThey knew not if the child whom God would send to proclaim to\\nthe world another King, even an heavenly another Ruler, even an\\nAlmighty one was to lead on earth a life of splendor or misery but\\nthis they knew, that He who commissioned him would be an all-\\nsufficient protector. In honor or poverty, in prosperity or disgrace,\\nHe who had said, He is my messenger, would uphold and com-\\nfort him.\\nThere was heard the voice of childhood in that home the meek\\nand loving Elisabeth held in her arms the precious gift her God had\\ngiven, and the father s soul overflowed with thanksgiving. Infancy\\nand old age, the wonder child and the grey-headed parents It\\nis a group on which the mind loves to rest a simple picture from\\nwhich the willing heart may learn a lesson of wisdom.\\nIn that home assembled the friends and neighbors of the parents\\nto rejoice with them, and to give a name to the infant there was", "height": "3556", "width": "2256", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0192.jp2"}, "191": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ZACH ARIAS. 181\\nsympathy and heartfelt gladness in the words of those who came to\\nbless the child, and to behold the honor the Lord had laid upon his\\nservants aye, and in heaven, around the throne of Jehovah, there\\nwas also thanksgiving and adoration, and the songs of the angels\\nwent forth in praise of him who was hastening the hour of his\\nappearance on earth as a Redeemer and Sanctifier, who had now\\nsent his messenger to prepare the way for his coming. It was in the\\npresence of all the witnesses who had gathered to circumcise his\\nchild that the voice of Zacharias came again to him it was there\\nhe broke forth into the beautiful song of praise, testifying thus\\nwith his recovered powers his strengthened faith and his thankful\\nspirit.\\nBlessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he hath visited and\\nredeemed his people, and hath raised up a horn of salvation for us\\nin the house of his servant David as he spake by the mouth of his\\nholy prophets, which have been since the world began that we\\nshould be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all that\\nhate us to perform the mercy promised to our fathers and to\\nremember his holy covenant the oath which he sware to our father\\nAbraham, that he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out\\nof the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear, in holiness\\nand righteousness before him all the days of our life. And thou,\\nchild, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest, for thou shalt go\\nbefore the face of the Lord to prepare His ways, to give knowledge\\nof salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins, through\\nthe tender mercy of our God; whereby the day-spring from on\\nhigh hath visited us, to give light to them that sit in darkness and\\nin the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.\\nJohn the Baptist was not, as the son born to Abraham in his old\\nage, the long-promised and the long-delayed nor was he come to\\nredeem a world lying in wickedness, as did Emanuel, the Virgin\\nMary s child there was no pompous rejoicing over him, as when", "height": "3516", "width": "2252", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0193.jp2"}, "192": {"fulltext": "182 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nan heir of worldly wealth and pride is born in the dwelling-places\\nof the great, yet a hope, and a fear, and an exceeding joy, such as\\nis seldom known in any home, was born with him. No light\\nmission was that on which he was sent. To make ready a people\\nprepared for the Lord A monarch so jealous, and even on the\\nalert to know the faintest questioning of his right to reign, as was\\nHerod, it was not for a moment supposable that he would be deaf\\nto a voice arousing his people to the knowledge of another King,\\nand demanding for him their allegiance. Danger would probably\\nattend every step of that child s after progress. No matter what was\\nthe nature of that reign for which he came to prepare the people,\\nthe mere fact that he was bespeaking the interest of a nation for a\\nstrange ruler was one implying danger, constant and imminent, to\\nthe messenger. Yet, dangerous as the mission of their son might\\nprove, though it was obviously such as made the parents at times\\nweep and tremble as they ministered to his helplessness, still did\\nthey confide in that power which was even than Herod s more\\nmighty. They must not shrink back must not strive to thwart his\\nwill, though temptation might at times be strong they must go\\nforward, bearing the boy, if need be, to the fiery furnace or the\\nsacrificial altar\\nAnd the child grew and waxed strong, and was in the deserts\\ntill the day of his showing unto Israel.\\nThat is all Scripture tells of the early years of John the Baptist\\nbut does it require any wild imaginative powers to form a reasonable\\nidea of his youth Filled from his birth with the Holy Ghost as he\\nwas, it is not supposable that the Messenger would not, without the\\nleast parental guidance, have come before the world, the same strong,\\nlion-hearted forerunner, the same bold accuser and condemner of\\nsin, no matter whether he found it dwelling beneath the princely\\nrobe or the beggar s rags. Had he never known the worth of a\\nfather s counsel and a mother s tender care, he would undoubtedly,", "height": "3548", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0194.jp2"}, "193": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ZACH ARIAS. 183\\nas one God had sent, have as constantly given utterance to that deep,\\nworld-entrancing, world-interesting theme, repentance towards\\nGod.\\nRepent repent would have as surely been the burden of his\\ncry, had there not been in his humble home in the deserts\\na human voice to teach of heaven and hell, or a human, hand\\nto direct his eyes and his feet to the narrow way.\\nGod needs no human instruments to carry forward his wondrous,\\nmysterious designs. Christ needed no forerunner to prepare his way\\nbut who can turn with a deaf ear or careless heart from the record\\nof the humblest of the servants He deigned to employ or who\\nwould care to acknowledge that for him it had been as well if the\\nholy, fearless, constant advocate of justice, John the Baptist, had\\nnever lived\\nBethlehem resounded with the cries of mothers weeping for their\\nchildren, who refused to be comforted because they were not, for\\nHerod sought thus to destroy the infant child of Mary, fearful,\\nthough he knew his own end was approaching, that the Jesus who\\nwas born, would wrest from his successors the earthly power he\\nloved so well.\\nBut Herod died, and in Egypt, the carpenter, with his wife, and\\nthe Son of man, were dwelling in safety. The triumph of the\\nking of Judea was passed, his magnificence was ended he knew\\nit, and, determined that his people should in the day of his death be\\nwretched as himself, he ordered that in Jerusalem there should be an\\nuniversal massacre, so that if his people could not mourn for him,\\nthey should have occasion to weep and lament for themselves, that\\nthey should ever remember his death with fearful agony and\\ngrief.\\nThey buried Herod in splendor, with the crown amid whose golden\\nbands and jewels thorns had been woven, with the crown he had\\nworn in such stately pride, placed on his head, and the sceptre\\nwhich had indeed, in his hand, proved an iron sceptre, resting by", "height": "3512", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0195.jp2"}, "194": {"fulltext": "184 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nhis side, it seemed as though in mockery of his vanished power.\\nThen they laid him away in a princely tomb and others reigned\\nin Judea in his stead.\\nDuring all this time, the child John was living in the desert, and\\nthe day was hastening for his showing unto Israel. How often,\\nas that day drew nigh, would the mother s heart have failed her, as\\nshe looked on the beautiful countenance of her son, listening with all\\na mother s innocent pride to the glowing, fiery, inspiring words with\\nwhich the boy gave utterance to the mighty thoughts dwelling\\nwithin his breast, had it not been that God, in whom she trusted,\\ngave to her that strength which he will give to every parent who\\nlooks to him for help How often, but for his higher love towards\\nGod, would the father s affection have caused him to mourn over the\\nfate that would so soon remove that innocent, loving, and obedient\\nchild from their protecting care\\nYes, doubtless, fears at times encompassed them. The over-\\nweening power of human love, doubtless, occasionally was stronger\\nthan their spirit of self-sacrifice but, reader, there was dwelling\\nwithin them in their desert home, a somewhat that strengthened\\ntheir weak human hearts for the trial hour, that upheld them and\\nmade them brave in the presence of danger, that endued them with\\npower to hope, and to believe, and to bear all things. To the parents\\nat best but a few years remained in store and for the son, even his\\nyouth and vigor were no guarantee of length of days. Every ill\\nmight encompass them during the time of their remaining pilgrim-\\nage and yet, beyond all cares and vexations, trials and dangers,\\nbeyond the endurance of the cross, heavy as it might prove,\\nBeyond the clouds, and beyond the tomb,\\nremained for them all, if faithful to the end, a rest unfading, eternal\\nsuch as the power of Herod could not buy for him such as the infi-\\nnite grace of God only can give such as man can never demand as\\na right, or hope for save through grace", "height": "3548", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0196.jp2"}, "195": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ZACHARIAS. 185\\nIn an age when faith seems to have lost its vital and essential\\npower, when the necessity of confidence and unfeigned trust in\\nGod seems the last necessity recognised, it would be well for us,\\nperhaps, did we oftener turn our thoughts to those times when the\\nlives of our Father s chosen were lives of constant, unreserved self-\\nsacrifice Think of it There is no conceivable danger man s heart\\ncannot nerve itself to brave, if he may but gain riches and the\\napplause of the world\\nThere come to us tidings that in a far-off region, in the wild caves\\nof nature, lie stores of gold, which all who will may gather, and a\\nmighty nation is moved all the dearest ties are severed without a\\nthought of regret, and in the face of danger, hardship, and death, the\\nhuman tide goes rushing on in search of gold But, the repent ye\\nrepent ye of John the Baptist, that comes echoing through the long\\nvista of eighteen hundred years, strengthened and commended by\\nthe teachings of Him whose very words are life to them who will\\nbelieve ah how feebly that cry resounds through our sin-hardened,\\ncare-burdened, world-loving spirits Ever with untiring voice the\\nMessenger is heard crying in the wilderness of sin but even as our\\nrebellious fathers did, we turn away, we have no time to listen.\\nHave we not gold to seek and fame to win and mighty works to\\ndo?\\nThe early years of John s life passed and at length, from an\\nobscure dwelling-place, a young man went forth, clad in rude, coarse\\ngarments, whose outward guise bore witness only to his humility and\\npoverty. Alone, unknown, he entered on the mission for which he had\\nbeen born. The people of the towns and villages through which he\\npassed, when they heard his strange words, looked upon him, some\\nof them with curiosity, and others with amazement some with\\nscorn, others but oh, how few with aroused attention, and an\\ninclination to believe.\\nFaithfully was that message delivered. By the roadside, to the\\ntraveller who was journeying through the same paths with him, he", "height": "3512", "width": "2228", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0197.jp2"}, "196": {"fulltext": "186 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\ntold with words so earnest of Him who was coming to demand the\\nhomage and love of all, that his listener was constrained to believe in\\nthe truth of the message, or to question the sanity of John and who\\nthat knows the human heart will wonder, if the latter was the con-\\nclusion often arrived at, and that the incredulous were often glad to\\nforget such earnest, searching words as rang in their ears, in the\\nthought He hath a devil. In the villages, to the wondering\\nlaborers and countrymen to them whose lives were lives of toil to\\nthe weary -fishermen resting by the river side to children to the\\naged to the thoughtless pleasure-seeker and to the beggar to the\\nnoble, the rejoicing, and the sorrowing, alike those momentous\\nwords were poured forth, Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at\\nhand\\nIt is but reasonable to suppose that by the poor and destitute of\\nthose cities and villages through which the strange preacher passed,\\nthose promises of a king, just and good, who was coming to bless\\nand save them, would be eagerly welcomed and believed. And, in\\naccordance with the sinful nature of man s heart in the time of\\nprosperity, is the supposition and the fact, that the rich and gay,\\nwell satisfied with their condition, wished for no better day than\\nthat they already had, and scorned so humble a messenger\\nThat youth was he, of whom so long ago Esaias had prophesied,\\nsaying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness. Prepare ye the\\nway of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be\\nfilled, and every mountain shall be brought low and the crooked\\nplaces shall be made straight, and the rough ways shall be made\\nsmooth and all flesh shall see the salvation of God That youth\\nwas the son of the blameless Zacharias and Elisabeth John the\\nBaptist.\\nAs he pursued his way and came to the region round about\\nJordan, the rumor of his preaching preceded him, and people\\nthronged to hear what he had to say to them. In every public\\nplace his voice was heard ringing out his warning, condemning, and", "height": "3544", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0198.jp2"}, "197": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ZACHAKIAS.\\nentreating words. Grey-headed men trembled before trie fearless\\nyouth. They, who out of curiosity stood within the sound of his\\nvoice, were many of them cut to the heart. And when these\\nexpressed to him at last their glad belief, his hands laid on their\\nheads the sacred waters of baptism sinful hearts quailed before\\nhim the jeers and laughs of the unbelievers were more rarely\\nheard the coward trembled at his words, as he had never trembled\\nin the face of mortal danger and even proud men, who heard by\\nchance the powerful doctrines of the preacher, to whom, in person,\\nthey would not deign to listen, felt humbled many a day by the\\ncondemning truths, which shot like w T ell aimed arrows through their\\nhearts. Even the careless daughters (would there were a John\\nthe Baptist to so speak, and so arouse the careless daughters and\\nthe womeu of ease now wept in secresy over follies, to whose\\niniquity the youthful messenger s preaching had for the first time\\neffectually opened their eyes. And many who would not turn a\\nstep out of their path that they also might hearken with the deeply\\nmoved multitude to the preacher s warnings and counsel, they, too,\\nat a later day when all Judea was moved, joined in the cry which\\nfrom that time through all succeeding ages of the world has arisen\\nfrom the hearts of repentant sinners, and will arise until the judg-\\nment day What shall we do to be saved\\nBring forth fruit meet for repentance was the reply, applica-\\nble now and ever, as then, purge yourselves of secret sins forget\\nthe things that are behind, and press forward for the prize of the\\nlove of Christ Jesus lay down your weapons of pride and rebellion\\ncease from covetousness give to the poor be obedient where\\nobedience is a virtue\\nKnow ye whence he had the bravery to speak these words in the\\nears of a powerful people and government The Holy Ghost Avas\\nwith him\\nIf there is one whose eye is resting on this page, who hears sound-\\ning in his heart words the spirit is prompting him to utter for the good", "height": "3504", "width": "2220", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0199.jp2"}, "198": {"fulltext": "188 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nof those about him, words which self-interest or fear of world-con-\\ndemnation would tempt him to stifle, when oppressed or outraged\\nhumanity might be bettered, and aided, and encouraged by their\\nutterance, Oh if there be, be thou a John the Baptist in spirit, and\\nword, and deed, and thou, too, mayest be a blessed herald of a\\nbetter day to them who are mourning and pining in darkness.\\nHow anxiously must the hearts of home, of the father and mother,\\nwhen they had blessed their child and sent him forth, have watched\\nand waited to know the reception his preaching and himself would\\nmeet from that rebellious and untoward generation With what\\nthankfulness and gladness must Elisabeth have heard the tidings of\\nthe valiantness and success with which he advocated the cause of\\ntheir master and with what joy must that aged father have beheld\\nthe fearlessness and force of his son s ministry A comfort, an\\nintense satisfaction was theirs, even in their loneliness, such as no\\nworldly power could affect or destroy for themselves, and he they\\nloved better than all else in life, were in the hands of one mighty to\\nsave.\\nJohn the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine,\\nand ye say he hath a devil were the expostulatory words our\\nSaviour addressed to the Pharisees when they reviled Him for eating\\nwith publicans and sinners. And considering them in another light\\nthan as a truth employed in that argument, what an insight that\\nsimple sentence gives us into the personal character of the Baptist\\nRefraining ever from companionship with sinners, and from all indul-\\ngence that would prove to those ever ready to imagine evil, that\\nearth was more to him than a mere scene of pilgrimage, or a journey\\nen which it was his to teach the travellers who thronged the road\\nthrough which he passed giving way to no appetite chaining and\\nholding always in subjection his human passions constantly ab-\\nsorbed in the one thought, the immense importance of the tr^st com-\\nmitted to him that of awakening a careless, unbelieving people\\npure in habit and in heart, self-denying, self-forgetful, John was and", "height": "3548", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0200.jp2"}, "199": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OP ZACHARIAS. 189\\nis an example not only to the teachers of the people not only to\\nman in his dealings with man not only as a witness of that great\\ntruth, that straightforwardness and strict honesty in act and in\\nspeech is ever the best policy but also in the relations of his private\\nlife, how brilliant a lesson is he to us, in the simplicity and godli-\\nness of his life, and in the noble purity of his heart giving to the\\nselfish, over-careful multitude such lessons in charity to the self-\\nrighteous Pharisees of all ages such instruction in the principles of\\njustice to the cruel, tyrannical soldiery such exhortations to mercy,\\nand to all who could hearken to him, the glad tidings, that one was\\ncoming after him, and was even then nigh at hand, far mightier than\\nhe, who would give to all ready to receive, a baptism not simply\\nof water, but a baptism into life and blessed immortality\\nThere were none so lonely, and destitute, and vile, within the\\nsound of the messenger s voice, that to them his words were not\\napplicable none so lofty, that he dared not tell them of One in\\nwhose hands they were but dust, who would condemn and visit for\\ntheir sins if they did not repent.\\nThe kingdom over which, in undivided power, Herod reigned, at\\nhis death was given into the hands of two rulers. Over Galilee\\nHerod the tetrarch was made king. He was a proud, wicked, and\\ncrafty man but, aside from the errors and wickedness of his govern-\\nment, he had committed an act of gross wrong in putting away his\\nown wife, and contracting a criminal alliance with a near relative,\\nnamed Herodias a woman ambitious and designing, destitute of all\\ngood or virtuous feeling, who in the end proved the curse and the\\nruin of the reign and the life of him who had so unlawfully wedded\\nher.\\nMaddened by the accusation which the fearless, noble preacher\\ndared to bring against her, Herodias persuaded the king to imprison\\nJohn, doubtless even then revolving in her mind some plan by which\\nshe might accomplish, or be the means of his ruin, disgrace, and\\ndeath.", "height": "3520", "width": "2224", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0201.jp2"}, "200": {"fulltext": "190 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nAnd had they yet departed to the home of the just, those aged\\nparents of John, in the day when their forebodings were realized,\\nand chains were laid upon the vigorous limbs of their young son\\nThe sacred pages throw no light upon their after lives. We know\\nnot if they were resting from their labors in the land of God s peace\\nin the hour when dangers gathered thickly round the youth nor\\nwhether, alone by their fireside, they still communed together, pray-\\ning that God would rescue and preserve their child. Feasting and\\nmirth and sin were in the halls of Herod; dwelt they still in\\npoverty together, or had one already departed, leaving the beloved\\ncompanion to bear the double affliction What would it avail us\\nto know, if we have not already learned one lesson from the love,\\nfaith, humility, patience, and obedience to God in all things, of the\\nfamily of Zacharias\\nIt would seem that John, in the very midst of his useful career, was\\nsuddenly deprived of his great power to teach, and counsel, and\\nwarn. It was not so. His mission was ended He had scattered\\nbroadcast the seed which was to spring up and bear fruit in the day\\nwhen Christ should speak the word. The work of the sower was\\ndone. What need for him to tarry till the harvest\\nThe hands which had poured the waters of regeneration over the\\nrepentant people were in chains but how nobly the labor set for\\nthem had been fulfilled 1 Had they not rested in their baptismal\\noffice on the head of the Redeemer They had been folded in\\ninfancy, when his father taught the little one to pray they had\\nbeen uplifted while his words, falling like coals of fire amid the mul-\\ntitude, startled the gainsaying generation they had ever done holy\\nwork, and what if they did wear the chains of Herod The heart\\nwhich had never beaten with love, save of the purest and most exalted\\nnature, might have throbbed at first wildly, beneath the shameful,\\ngalling bonds might have panted and longed to carry on that good\\nwork so gloriously begun might have questioned if his mission\\nwere to end thus ingloriously but John had not learned the lesson", "height": "3548", "width": "2232", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0202.jp2"}, "201": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ZACHARIAS. 191\\nof submission in vain. Ere long the peaceful conviction was again\\nascendant that if his Lord had need of him, He would in an instant\\nforce from those limbs their vile fetters, fling wide the prison doors,\\nand let the captive go free.\\nIt was a festive night. The lords of his kingdom were gathered\\nwith Herod in the magnificent banqueting hall of his palace, and\\non swift wings the pleasure-freighted hours sped away. A cloud was\\ngathering over the bright summery sky of those men s existence its\\nfury perchance has not yet fully broken on them it may not till\\nthat day but then\\nThe eyes and the senses of the king and of his nobles were in-\\nflamed with the wine they had so freely quaffed the tables before\\nthem bent with the weight of vessels of silver and gold, that were\\nfilled with the choicest and the costliest food, and numberless lamps\\nspread over the splendid display a brightness like that of sunlight.\\nAfar there wandered one who had not where to lay his head, the\\nSon of Mary, the Lord God Omnipotent, robed in the poor gar-\\nments of humanity And within the sound of the mirth and\\nrevelry in Herod s palace, John the Baptist knelt in his prison cell\\nand prayed\\nInto the great hall where the pride of Galilee was gathered, glided\\na light and graceful form, the beautiful young Salome. More like\\nsome fairy shape than one of human mould the young girl seemed\\nto those delighted guests and voices that had been heard to ring\\nfiercely in the battle fields, and sternly in the halls of state, were\\nraised in wondering admiration as the maiden moved on in the\\ndance.\\nPleased and excited by the homage rendered the daughter of\\nHerodias, the king exclaimed to Salome, Name but the gift thou\\ndesirest though it were the half of my kingdom, I would give it\\nthee\\nJoyfully sped the young girl away to her mother to learn of her", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0203.jp2"}, "202": {"fulltext": "192 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nthe gift it was most fitting she should ask. Admiring glances fol-\\nlowed her as she went, and the heart of many a youth beat wildly\\nwhile gazing on her beauty. But when she came again, and passed\\nwith a slow and heavy step through the crowd of courtiers, with\\nhead bent, and face so pale and sorrowful, there was a murmur of\\nwonder, and men gathered anxiously round the king to hear her\\nname the gift she prized the highest. Oh how cruelly sharp and\\npiercing was the youthful voice that made the fell demand, I will\\nthat thou give me the head of John the Baptist in a charger\\nAnd for his oath s sake King Herod suffered it to be so.\\nThe prisoner was alone in his cell in the darkness. A damp,\\nchilly, comfortless place was that prison, but at nightfall a ray of sun-\\nlight had streamed through the barred window. It seemed to him like\\nthe visitation of an angel perhaps, he knew not, it was the angel\\nheralding to him another day than would dawn upon the people of\\nthe earth. But John was not afraid there was a Spirit with him\\nthere the Spirit God had sent. It strengthened and supported\\nhim that same spirit who had spread such happiness through his\\nearly home, who had ever proved the consoler of his aged parents\\nand himself. Hours passed on it drew near midnight, when, in\\nthe deep hush of the prison, the wakeful missionary heard footsteps\\nmoving through the passage leading to his cell. Were they come\\nto liberate him\\nThey entered the narrow room one of the stern men bore in his\\nhand a light, the other carried with him instruments of death\\nThe king demands thy head was the greeting to the prisoner.\\nOne supplication, twas not for life or liberty one prayer, it was for\\ntheir forgiveness and his acceptance, and the obedient head was\\nbowed, and the heart of Zacharias son was ready for the sacrifice.\\nThe oblation was made, and that strong intellect was before another\\nsunrise grasping loftier truths than the heart or mind of man hath\\never yet conceived.\\nAnd then the head whose brain had teemed with such lofty,", "height": "3544", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0204.jp2"}, "203": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF ZACHARIAS. 193\\nzealous, generous thoughts, was given to the maiden in the presence\\nof the multitude who gathered around Herod. And Salome bore it\\nto her mother and the murderess smiled when she knew the sin-\\ncondemning voice of John was hushed for ever But it was quite\\nanother group that met and wept over the mutilated form which\\nhad spent itself in the Redeemer s service. The disciples bore away\\nfrom the prison the precious body, and laid it in a lonely grave. It\\nwas a place ever consecrated and precious in their memory a place\\nwhere many a tear of deep repentance fell a place where more\\nthan one heart grew strong and bold to follow in the Baptist s\\nfootsteps\\nThus was laid to his rest the first soldier in that most glorious\\narmy, whose ranks, composed of brave hearts of every nation, and\\nkindred, and tribe, are scattered now over the wide earth. God\\ngrant there may be found some few amid the multitude as worthy\\nto do battle and to die for the great Captain of our Salvation, as\\nthe Messenger sent to prepare the people for His coming.\\nBut yet, dear reader, it is not warriors ready to fight to the death\\nin His service, that are chiefly wanted now Rarely among us is\\nthe sacrifice of blood required. I would my voice might take unto\\nitself wings, and penetrate not the remote wildernesses not to the\\nheathen nations beyond seas, but unto fastnesses more difficult to\\npenetrate into the cold, dead hearts which have so long heard the\\nWord in vain into the recesses of homes where fathers toil early\\nand late without ceasing, enduring .anxieties, cares, and hardships\\nincredible, and all to lay up for their children stores of perishing-\\nwealth.\\nI would my voice might come unto the mothers whose pride is\\nin the beauty, and grace, and talents of their children, that they\\nmight be constrained to think if worldly honor and success, and the\\napplause of perishing sinners, is the best good they can hope to\\nsecure for their offspring. I would I might approach the children\\nhedged in by the almost impenetrable wall of custom and fashion\\n9", "height": "3504", "width": "2216", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0205.jp2"}, "204": {"fulltext": "194 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE,\\nof the world, that I might entreat them to think much of that mis-\\nsion on which they are sent\\nThon father hast thou taught thy sons to be messengers of\\nTruth to the world. Through the dark paths which they must\\ntread, what light hast thou put into their hands to guide them\\nHast thou sent them forth to prepare their brethren, inasmuch as\\nthey may, for the Saviour s second coming or hast thou read of\\nZacharias in vain\\nAnd thou mother, for what hast thou prepared thy daughters\\nHast thou made them beautiful and graceful, and taught them to\\nstrive to please and charm mankind to dazzle and shine in the\\nscenes of fashion, when thou mightst have made them beacon-lights\\nto save the tempest-tossed or hast thou sent them missionaries\\ninto the world, to guide, and bless, and teach\\nAnd ye children young men and maidens, what is it ye are\\nliving for Folly, and pleasure, and fame, and gold Is it to\\nshine in the dance to grace the festival to win names of honor\\nto be recorded on the Scrolls of Fame Are ye scorning the\\nbuilders of the Safety Ark, and turning deafly away from the voice\\nof the messenger.\\nYe cannot remember, ye cannot plant brilliant flowers on the\\nbroad and pleasant way, and at the same time make straight the\\npaths of the Lord neither may ye stand idle all the day. Which\\nwill ye choose, God or Mammon Messengers of Jesus or of the\\nEvil One, which will ye prove Oh, may the Holy Spirit that\\ndwelt in and inspired John the Baptist help you to decide, and\\nto-day, if ye will hearken unto my voice harden not your hearts", "height": "3520", "width": "2232", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0206.jp2"}, "205": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY AT BETHANY.\\nBY REV. S. D. BURCHARD.\\nBehold the place where Jesus often dwelt,\\nWhile soft compassion all his spirit moved\\nAnd friends who gloried in his presence felt\\nThe joy of loving, and of being loved.\\nMany of the places mentioned in Scripture are associated with\\nsome signal event which has hallowed them in the memory of the\\ngood. That event may have been transient perhaps the outgush\\nof some terrible emotion, or the uplifting of the arm of Deity, either\\nfor deliverance or destruction. Be it what it may, a miracle of\\nmercy or a manifestation of wrath, the place of its occurrence is an\\nobject of interest to the succeeding generations of men. What a\\nrush of old memories, venerable as time and awful as the treadings\\nof the Almighty, comes over the traveller as he stands upon Sinai\\nor Horeb, dark, rugged, and awe-inspiring Less terrific, but not\\nless hallowing, are the associations which cluster around Carmel,\\nHermon, and Mount Zion, where the Lord commanded his blessing,\\neven life for ever more. These places may be bleak and wild,\\nbarren of every vestige of modern art, but they possess a charm\\nwhich no romance can equal or poetry describe. Dearer and still\\nmore attractive memory-places are those rendered sacred by the\\nmiracles and ministry of Him who was God manifest in the\\nflesh.\\nIn the lapse of time and in the unfolding mysteries of Providence,\\nwe see the star which had hung over the darkness of Eden in the\\nform of a distant and doubtfully interpreted promise, pointing out\\nBethlehem of Judea as the birth-place of Jesus, the anointed King\\n195", "height": "3504", "width": "2228", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0207.jp2"}, "206": {"fulltext": "196 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nof Israel. And now is beginning to be seen, in all its marvel and\\nin all its magnificence, the fulfilment of the prophetic saying, But\\nthou Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thou-\\nsands of Judah, yet out of thee shall He come forth unto me, that\\nis to be Ruler in Israel, whose goings forth have been from old, from\\neverlasting. Micah v. 2.\\nBethlehem would long since have faded from the memory of\\nman, had it not been mentioned in prophecy and distinguished in\\nhistory, as the chosen spot over which the wings of angels hovered\\nto welcome the advent of the Son of God.\\nCold, indeed, must that man s piety be, which is not kindled to a\\nwarmer glow as he stands amid these clustering associations, treads\\nthe streets of the Holy City, or walks the mountain slopes of Judea,\\nor listens to the murmuring waters of the Jordan.\\nBut of all the places recorded in Scripture, perhaps none is more\\nsacred than the little village of Bethany. Though not recognised by\\nthis name in the Old Testament, it is frequently mentioned in the\\nTalmud, and is undoubtedly a place of great antiquity. It is situ-\\nated on the eastern slope of the Mount of Olives, on the road to\\nJericho, about two miles from the city of Jerusalem. This village,\\nromantic and retired, was distinguished in the days of our Saviour\\nas the residence of Lazarus and his two sisters, Martha and Mary.\\nIt was to this place, amid the pressure of his trials and the fatigues\\nof his labors, that He was accustomed to repair. It was the soft\\ngreen, on which his heart found repose from the trials of a hard and\\ntoilsome life. It was in this pious family, where love and religion\\nblended their hallowing light and influence, that he met with those\\nlittle kindnesses and attentions, which were so soothing to his sensi-\\ntive nature, and made him feel that there was one spot of earth at\\nleast partially restored to its primeval bloom and beauty. It was\\nhere that the human and social of the man Jesus were gratified. In\\nother relations he awed the multitude by the grandeur of his mira-\\ncles and the flashings forth of his divine nature but in the family", "height": "3544", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0208.jp2"}, "207": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY AT BETHANY. 197\\nat Bethany lie was the companion and the friend, cultivating and\\nhonoring those social and domestic attachments, which relieve earth\\nof much of its care and make it a type and emblem of heaven.\\nThis was doubtless a Jewish family educated in the Hebrew faith,\\nand strictly observant of that ancient form of worship but their hearts\\nhad been opened to the reception of that truth which giveth light.\\nThe shadow had been yielded for the substance, the scaffolding for\\nthe building, the type for the anti-type, Moses for Jesus. How this\\nfamily had been brought under the influence of this Divine Teacher,\\nthe history does not definitely inform us. They may have met him\\nin the Temple, at some of their religious feasts, and attracted by his\\nmeek and gentle bearing, they may have extended to him the hos-\\npitalities of their quiet home, where he planted the spiritual seed\\ngrain in hearts previously and providentially prepared, which subse-\\nquently sprang up and ripened into a harvest of enduring and\\nimmortal growth. Whatever may have been the circumstances\\nwhich led to their conversion, they evidently became devotedly\\nattached to the Saviour s person and mission. Though as yet there\\nhad been no formal renunciation of their former faith and worship\\nno seclusion from their brethren according to the flesh still holier\\nfire had been kindled upon their ancient family altar, and holier\\nincense had risen from their hearts, than ever ascended from golden\\ncensers. With an earnest and full faith, they had received Jesus as\\nthe true and promised Messiah, the hope of Israel and the Saviour\\nthereof. Many are the evidences of the individual faith and piety\\nof this interesting family. The fact that they received and enter-\\ntained the despised and rejected Nazarene manifests an affection and\\na fortitude truly commendable in that age of prejudice and persecu-\\ntion. What but a true faith in Him as the Messiah, enabled them\\nto endure the odium attached to their voluntary fealty and friend-\\nship Doubtless they loved Jesus as a man, but they trusted in\\nhim as God. It was more than the outgush of natural affection\\nwhich prompted Mary to that noble sacrifice which incurred the", "height": "3516", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0209.jp2"}, "208": {"fulltext": "198 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\ncensure of at least one of the disciples. It was a precious memorial\\nof her faith an act of piety which has rendered her name illustrious\\nand immortal. And she was commended by him who appreciated\\nthe affectionate token, and he said by way of reproof to her accusers\\nWheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole\\nworld, this also that she hath done shall be spoken of, for a memo-\\nrial of her.\\nThis pious act is mentioned by at least three of the Evangelists.\\nJohn, more minute in his details, says, that She took a pound\\nof ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus,\\nand wiped his feet with her hair, and the house was filled with the\\nodor of the ointment.\\nWhat an exhibition of love and humility is here\\nWith tears she washed his sacred feet,\\nAnd wiped them with her flowing hair\\nAnd freely took the ointment sweet,\\nAnd poured its costly fragrance there.\\nLuke mentions another fact which illustrates the piety of these\\nsisters of Bethany Now it came to pass, as they went, that he\\nentered into a certain village and a certain woman, named Martha,\\nreceived him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary,\\nwhich also sat at Jesus feet and heard his words. But Martha\\nwas cumbered about much serving, and came to him and said, Lord,\\ndost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone Bid\\nher, therefore, that she help me. And Jesus answered and said unto\\nher, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many\\nthings But one thing is needful, and Mary hath chosen that good\\npart which shall not be taken away from her. Luke x. 38.\\nNow this brief narrative brings to view their respective and\\ndistinctive traits of character. Both were pious, both loved Jesus,\\nand both desired to serve him. Mary seems to have been the more\\ngentle and loving in her disposition her piety was of the calm and", "height": "3552", "width": "2252", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0210.jp2"}, "209": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY AT BETHANY. 199\\nmeditative cast. She was content to be the passive and delighted\\nrecipient of those divine teachings that distilled like the dew from his\\nlips. The world, Avith its anxieties and troubles, its everyday per-\\nplexities and cares, was nothing to her, so long as she could sit\\na charmed listener at the Master s feet. She loved with all the deep\\nintensity of a trustful and devoted heart. She may not have had the\\nelements of endurance, self-denial, and womanly fortitude, which cha-\\nracterized her more careful and anxious sister. She might have\\nmade a more amiable companion, a more loving friend, but perhaps\\nnot a more heroic and self-denying missionary. She, doubtless, had\\nthe meekness and the patience to submit to trials without the mur-\\nmur of a word, but not the heroic courage to meet and overcome\\nthem. She was the gentle Mary, who loved because it was her\\nnature to love. Her love, indeed, was holy, for in all its strength and\\npathos it was consecrated upon one worthy of love so deep, so pure,\\nso divine. Martha was a different character, possessing more strength\\nand energy, being more stirring and active, more nervous and petu-\\nlant. Her heart may have been quite as open to the wants of\\nothers, quite as ready to do and to suffer for her Saviour, as her more\\ngentle and confiding sister. But there were household duties to be\\nperformed, and she was doubtless conscientious in endeavoring to\\nprovide suitable entertainment for so distinguished a guest. She\\nconceived that the Master was worn and w r eary with his more public\\nlabors and cares, and she desired for him rest and refreshment. Are\\nnot these the suggestions of love and piety She, perhaps, erred in\\nbeing too anxious and impulsive, and for the momentary fret which\\nshe manifested, she was duly reproved by Jesus, who delicately\\nshielded the gentle and loving creature sitting at his feet from her\\nunmerited rebuke. The reproof was timely and well meant, and,\\ndoubtless, well received and was a salutary warning to Martha not\\nto suffer the earthly to supersede, even for a moment, the heavenly.\\nA due attention to the former is right, but the danger is in excess\\nand absorption of one s entire thoughts and energies. Safety lies in", "height": "3500", "width": "2220", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0211.jp2"}, "210": {"fulltext": "200 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nthe other direction it is a course illumined with promises, radiant\\nwith hope, and crowned with a blessing. And Mary hath chosen\\nthat good part which shall not be taken away from her. Lazarus\\nwas also a member of this family group. He was an only brother,\\nand tenderly loved by Jesus, and his two sisters, Martha and Mary.\\nBereaved of their parents, and secluded from the world, their\\nearthly affections clung the more fondly to him and it seems that he\\nwas devoted to the comfort and welfare of his sisters. He was the\\nlight of their household and the joy of their hearts, and beautiful and\\nblessed were the hours spent in each other s society.\\nThus happy and harmonious, it was a model family, selected out\\nof all the families then upon the earth, as the favorite resort of the\\nSon of God. And shall they not be exempt from the blighting\\ntouch of sorrow\\nShall death enter, and amid hearts all warm, all sensitive, all\\ngushing forth in tenderness, and deaf to the pleadings of sisterly\\naffection, mar the happiness of this family group, and spread the\\nloneliness of the grave over their dwelling At length, disease,\\nthat fearful precursor of a more dreaded calamity, comes. Lazarus\\nis the chosen victim.\\nTherefore his sisters sent unto Jesus, saying, behold, he whom\\nthou lovest is sick.\\nIt might seem that his affection for the family would have\\nhastened his departure to the scene of trial but no, he intends to\\nevolve light from amid the deepening gloom, and to elaborate from\\ndeath and corruption an argument irresistible, in favor of life, and\\nimmortality. The awful blow, with crushing weight, at length has\\nfallen.\\nLazarus is dead\\nThat form which love had whispered would be last\\nTo greet their dying vision, cold and still\\nIn death is laid. The hand which they had cherished\\nWould return no pressure. Those lips which cheered", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0212.jp2"}, "211": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY AT BETHANY. 201\\nWere closed in marble stillness, and gave back\\nNo fond caress!\\nAlas to them the world is drear and desolate.\\nThey had been oft alone\\nWhen Lazarus had followed Christ to hear\\nHis teachings in Jerusalem but this\\nWas more than solitude. The silence now\\nWas void of expectation.\\nBut lo the Master cometh and on his lips are words of life and\\nblessing\\nTo the anxious Martha, who, on the way, had met him, he says,\\nThy brother shall rise again. In the full belief of that cardinal\\ndoctrine of our faith, she replies, I know that he shall rise again,\\nin the resurrection at the last day. Jesus said unto her, I am the\\nresurrection and the life he that believeth in me, though he were\\ndead, yet shall he live. What sublime words are these words\\nwhich spoke comfort to the sorrowing heart of Martha. Thy bro-\\nther shall rise again. Not some undefined and spiritual substance\\nshall be eliminated from the dark grave of mortality; not some\\nstrange being shall go forth from the tomb but thy brother,\\nwith all a brother s warm heart and sympathies, shall rise again.\\nBut this seemed to point to the dim and veiled future and shadow\\nand mystery hung over the promise of reunion with the loved and lost.\\nThis, though comforting, was not satisfying it was too distant, too\\nvague to be apprehended only by faith. She desires something imme-\\ndiate, and she seems to cling to the trembling hope that her Lord\\nmight now interpose, and restore to her the object of her love. She\\nsays, I know that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will\\ngive it thee. With a bosom heaving with the struggling emotions\\nof hope and fear, she returns to the house, and secretly says to her\\nsister, The Master is come and calleth for thee. As soon as she\\n9*", "height": "3508", "width": "2208", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0213.jp2"}, "212": {"fulltext": "202 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nheard that, she arose quickly, and came unto him, and fell down at\\nhis feet, saying, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not\\ndied. When Jesus, therefore, saw her weeping, and the Jews also\\nweeping that came with her, he groaned in the spirit and was trou-\\nbled, and said, Where have ye laid him They say unto him, Lord,\\ncome and see. Jesus wept. Behold now the humanity of Jesus\\nHe felt, aye, he felt deeply for those stricken-hearted mourners. Not\\nwith cold indifference, not in proud triumph did he stand by that\\ngrave of sorrow.\\nThough he was thinking of a triumph a triumph over death\\nyet sadness was in his heart, and again groaning within himself, he\\nsteps to the mouth of the cave. An awful suspense rests on the\\nminds of that sorrowful group. He prays deep and tremulous\\nwere the tones of his voice.\\nHe ceased,\\nAnd for a minute s space there was a hush,\\nAs if the angelic watchers of the world\\nHad stayed the pulses of all breathing things,\\nTo listen to that prayer.\\nTake ye away the stone, said Jesus. There was no need of\\nomnipotence for that. The stone is removed. Doubt and expec-\\ntancy alternate in the agonized hearts of Mary and Martha. At\\nlength the mandate is given\\nCome forth, he cries, thou dead\\nO God what means that strange and sudden sound\\nThat murmurs from the tomb, that ghastly head\\nWith funeral fillets bound\\nIt is a living form\\nThe loved, the lost, the won\\nWon from the grave, corruption, and the worm.\\nAnd is not this the Son\\nOf God 1 they whispered, while the sisters poured\\nTheir gratitude in tears for they had known the Lord.", "height": "3552", "width": "2256", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0214.jp2"}, "213": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY AT BETHANY. 203\\nThey awoke from their delirium of grief as from a strange, dark\\ndream. It is not a phantasm that is before them it is their brother,\\nreturned from the land of darkness and mystery. Then* home\\nis again cheered by the tones of his glad voice, the broken link is\\nrestored, they are again, as before, the hopeful, the happy, the\\nharmonious family at Bethany.", "height": "3512", "width": "2220", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0215.jp2"}, "214": {"fulltext": "XX.\\nTHE FAMILY OF CORNELIUS.\\nOne of the most attractive and interesting pictures in the New\\nTestament is that of the centurion Cornelius and his household. A\\nGentile by birth and education, he had probably enjoyed the\\nadvantages of instruction in the principles of revealed religion, as\\ntaught among the Jews. A soldier, having a military force under\\nhis command, and occupied during a great part of his time by\\nactive duties, it is likely the influences which surrounded him were\\nno more favorable to spiritual piety than such have been in later\\nages. Yet on him the spirit of prayer was largely poured out and\\nit is evident he had such a conception of the nature of God and\\nreligious services, as showed he had not been left to the vague\\napjDrehensions of mere human reason. Though not a proselyte, we\\nmay conclude that the spiritual notions of the Deity peculiar to the\\nJewish creed had been recognised by him as truth. In an age of\\nsuperstition and idolatry he worshipped one Eternal Father of the\\nuniverse, acknowledging his spiritual and illimitable nature. He\\nknew nothing, however, of the typical meaning of the stated sacri-\\nfices, nor of the way of salvation opened through the blood shed on\\nthe cross for the remission of sins, nor of the Light which was to\\nenlighten the Gentiles, and be the glory of Israel. The good\\nreport which he enjoyed among all the nation of the Jews bespeaks\\nsome acquaintance on his part with their tenets and their law, while\\nthe truth they had refused to receive had never yet been proclaimed\\nin his hearing.\\nThe testimony recorded of him, that he was a devout man, and\\none that feared God with all his house, is evidence that he fulfilled\\nin their highest sense the duties belonging to the head of a family.\\n204", "height": "3544", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0216.jp2"}, "215": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF CORNELIUS. 205\\nIt implies the subjection to his authority of each member of the\\ncircle, according to the provisions of the original institution, with a\\njudicious government on his part, mild yet absolute, so far as their\\nspiritual well-being was concerned. It was his province, as a father\\nand ruler, to direct and purify their worship, to be their leader in\\nsacred services, and to watch that the daily practice of all under his\\nresponsible control was conformable to the principles by which they\\nprofessed to be guided. He prayed to God always, and thus was\\nenabled to discharge this trust. His benevolence overflowed not\\nmerely upon those nearest him, but upon all the people to whom he\\ngave much alms. He was universally esteemed a just man, not\\nonly enjoying the respect of all his acquaintance, but being an\\nobject of grateful veneration to the por who shared his bounty\\nDistress but gleaned from others store,\\nFrom his she reaped a plenteous dole\\nwhile the spring of his charity lay not in selfish ostentation, but in\\npure love to his fellow beings, born of love to the Creator. What\\ncharacter more amiable or more admirable among men could be\\nportrayed What nobler example could be presented to those of\\nhis own station and circumstances Yet for this man, whose heart\\nhad been prepared by the secret influence of Him who changes the\\nunclean into clean, that the good seed might be sown therein, and\\nripen, and bring forth fruit in abundance a revelation of the way\\nof salvation was necessary before he could stand accepted before the\\nface of his Maker. His prayers and his alms went up for a memorial,\\nnot to plead his cause or obtain favor for him at the throne of\\nmercy, but to show that he was fitted, by the mysterious operation\\nof the Spirit, to receive the grace which alone could make alive\\nthrough Christ Jesus to be made a child of God through the\\nrighteousness which is by faith. The word had never yet reached him.\\nCommanded to begin their teachings at Jerusalem, the apostles had", "height": "3504", "width": "2216", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0217.jp2"}, "216": {"fulltext": "206 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BII3LE.\\nnot yet so far shaken off the yoke of the ceremonial law as to con-\\ntemplate the full extent of their divine mission. The sound of the\\nwords heard from the mount that might be touched, lingered in\\ntheir ears, and they knew not that they were already come to the\\ntypical Mount Sion, the city of the living God. The exclusive\\ncharacter of the Jewish ordinances forbade the sharing of their\\nprivileges with those who had not received the seal of initiation\\nthe same spirit of limitation in their apprehension pervaded Chris-\\ntianity. The fountain of blessing, issuing from the gates of\\nJerusalem, was to flow only in the ancient channels the people who\\nhad of old been chosen for the preservation of the divine oracles,\\nwere still to be the sole depositaries of the truth, and to dispense it\\nto the world. The idea that God would pour out upon, the uncir-\\ncumcised heathen the gift of the Holy Ghost, that the blessings of\\nthe religion they were appointed to disseminate were to be free to\\nall mankind, as the bestowment of air and light, that whosoever\\nwould might drink of the water of life freely that the Almighty\\nwas no respecter of persons had not entered into their conception.\\nThe knowledge of this great feature in the new dispensation was\\nfirst given to the apostles and brethren in the impressive instance of\\nthe family of Cornelius.\\nThis new revelation of the divine will, destined to be so mighty and\\npervading in its effects, was made known by two visions. One was\\nsent to the Roman centurion as he fasted and prayed the other to\\nthe apostle as he prayed upon the housetop and how marvellous is\\nthe connexion between them The military chief and the zealous\\ndisciple were strangers to each other in the ordinary course of\\nhuman affairs they might never have met. They were brought\\ntogether by a miraculous interposition of Providence w r ith a design\\nnot only gracious to each of them as individuals, but involving con-\\nsequences of infinite importance to the whole human race. The\\npiety and good works of Cornelius were had in remembrance in the\\nsight of God, because He was mindful, in his all-embracing mercy,", "height": "3548", "width": "2252", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0218.jp2"}, "217": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF CORNELIUS. 20*\\nof the helpless condition of the nation who sat in darkness and the\\nshadow of death. The exclusiveness of Peter was to be rebuked,\\nbecause the end of all things was come as regarded the former dis-\\npensation the first being taken away, that the glorious second\\nmight be established. It is in this light that we must look upon\\nthe vision in which Cornelius saw the man in bright clothing the\\nangel of God standing before him, and calling him familiarly by\\nname. It was indeed a worthy mission for one of the most exalted\\nof the hierarchy of heaven, to be charged with such a task to re-\\nmove the partition wall built for ages to take away the veil which\\nhad hitherto forbidden access to the most holy place.\\nAlthough the supernatural visitant called him by name, the\\nsoldier was afraid when he looked on him. The Being whom he\\nworshipped so devoutly appeared not yet to him in the light of a\\nFather, whose messages he could hear without trembling, for he had\\nnot yet beheld the invisible in the face of Him who is the express\\nimage of his person. But with submissive reverence he asked,\\nWhat is it, Lord The reply was most encouraging, and\\nassured him of acceptance, the way to which was now to be shown\\nhim. Send men to Joppa, and call for one Simon, whose surname\\nis Peter he shall tell thee what thou oughtest to do.\\nThe angel departed, and Cornelius immediately summoned two\\nof the servants of his household, and a soldier of the guard he kept\\nabout his person, one who like him was deeply imbued with the\\nreverence due to the things of religion, and who worshipped in sin-\\ncerity, according to the light given him. To these the chief related\\nwhat had passed, and sent them to Joppa in search of the man\\nindicated in the vision.\\nIt was necessary that the mind of Peter should be prepared\\nbefore he could be satisfied to do what implied the abrogation of\\nthe ritual law, established so many ages before by divine authority,\\nand to dismiss at once his Jewish prejudices. A mysterious vision\\nwhile he was at prayer on the housetop, in which animals declared", "height": "3504", "width": "2208", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0219.jp2"}, "218": {"fulltext": "208 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nunclean by the law were pronounced clean and fit for use, threw\\nhim into musing, till the arrival of the men sent to seek him, and\\nthe command of the Spirit that he should go with them explained\\nthe meaning of the injunction thrice solemnly repeated What\\nGod hath cleansed, that call not thou common. The men were\\nforeigners and Gentiles, such as a Jew could not associate with, or\\ncome unto, without violating the law but he was commanded in a\\nmanner he dared not gainsay, to go down and receive them as\\nguests to depart with them, without hesitation, he knew not\\nwhither, nor for what purpose, doubting nothing, for that they had\\nbeen sent by the Holy Spirit. There could have been no greater\\ntrial of his faith, for it brought into conflict duties he had held con-\\nsistent with one another and as yet he knew not to what tended\\nthe strange requisition. But he could not be disobedient to the\\npositive command laid on him. Inquiring of the messengers their\\nbusiness, and hearing their report of the character of Cornelius, and\\nthe cause of his sending for him, he invited the men to remain with\\nhim till the following day. Doubtless it was a great surprise to the\\nbrethren at Joppa, to see the great apostle of the circumcision thus\\noffering hospitable entertainment to persons whom the religious cus-\\ntoms of his country forbade him to harbor. They were probably\\nliberal both of question and remonstrance, and some of them accom-\\npanied Peter on his journey, desiring to understand further the\\nimport of what had occurred or perhaps going at his request, that\\nthey might witness all that should pass, and bear testimony to other\\nbelievers.\\nOn their arrival at Csesarea, they found preparations made for\\ntheir reception. The centurion had assembled his kinsmen and near\\nfriends, all disposed, as he was, to receive instruction, that they\\nmight share in the expected communication. There must have\\nbeen something peculiarly impressive in the scene, when so many\\nconverts on whom grace had been shed, preparing their hearts to\\nreceive the truth, were waiting the approach of the stranger from", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0220.jp2"}, "219": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF CORNELIUS. 209\\nwhom they were to hear the words of life. The hush of\\nexpectation was at length broken by the announcement of his\\ncoming and Cornelius went out to meet him. He doubtless ex-\\npected to see an extraordinary person; perhaps he thought the\\nMessiah predicted by the prophets was before him. He fell pros-\\ntrate at his feet, and worshipped him but Peter refused the\\nhomage, as not to be received by a mere man. Raising him from\\nthe ground, he bade him stand up, for that he was, like himself, but\\na frail human being, and by no means entitled to the reverence due\\none of divine nature. The words spoken before entering the house\\nseem to have been on the apostle s side, and explanatory of his real\\ncharacter, for he was most anxious that no mistake should be made\\nwith regard to his person or mission, and always emphatically\\nrebuked those who offered him divine honors. When he entered,\\nand stood in the midst of the assembly convened to meet him, his\\nfirst address reminded them of the prejudices of his nation, and the\\nlaw prohibiting the association of Jews with foreigners. In this\\ncase, however, he had acted contrary to the law, and had overstepped\\nthe prejudice by the express command of the Maker of all, who\\nhad shown him that he should not call any man common or\\nunclean. With this new and enlarged apprehension of the\\ndignity of his fellow beings, he had come when sent for and now\\ndesired to know why he had been called thither. The account\\ngiven of his vision by Cornelius first showed the divine purpose, in\\nall its breadth, to his understanding. He saw that his judgment\\nhad erred in limiting the blessing meant by the Giver to be\\nunlimited; and after the ingenious conclusion of the centurion s\\nspeech Now therefore are we all here present before God, to hear\\nall things that are commanded thee of God. Peter s first w T ords\\nimply a sense of his error. The prejudices in which he had been\\neducated the natural clinging of opinion and feeling to a time-\\nhonored dispensation, gave way at once to the conviction forced\\nupon him, that God is no respecter of persons. The universality", "height": "3512", "width": "2228", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0221.jp2"}, "220": {"fulltext": "210 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nof the gospel provisions was evident to his mind and impressed\\nwith the discovery of God s gracious purpose, made in this unprece-\\ndented transaction, he proceeded to unfold the message with which\\nhe had been charged to sinners the words of life whereby it had\\nbeen promised not by prayers and alms the centurion and his\\nfamily should be saved. As he began to speak before his dis-\\ncourse was ended, an event took place most marvellous to the\\nbelievers who had come from Joppa with the apostle. The Holy\\nGhost fell on all them which heard the word. They were instantly\\nendued, not only with the illuminating and sanctifying influences of\\nthe Comforter, but with the same miraculous gifts which had accom-\\npanied his advent on the day of Pentecost. There could be no\\ndoubting nor question further the like gift was poured out upon\\nthe Gentiles as on those born within the pale of the ancient church\\nand Peter appealed to the brethren who were with him, to know if\\nany could forbid the baptism of water, by which the new converts,\\nthus honored with the seal of heaven, should be formally received\\ninto their ranks. The same argument prevailed to convince the\\napostles and brethren in Jerusalem, who afterwards publicly called\\nPeter to account for thus dispensing with the law of ordinances.\\nWe are taught by this view of the family of Cornelius how\\nmuch may be done by the piety of the master of a household. It\\nis reasonable to suppose that most of those who owned subjection to\\nhis military authority were influenced by the equity of his cha-\\nracter, his liberal charity, and his sincere piety while those nearest\\nhim, with his kinsmen, were accustomed to join in his religious ser-\\nvices. Each morning and evening his prayers ascended, and they\\nwere not merely for the daily blessings of life, but for new light\\nwhereby he might walk. The knowledge he had gained taught\\nhim to crave further directions respecting the truth and will of God,\\nand he waited in earnest faith for the manifestation. What an\\nexample was this Gentile captain to Christians who live under the\\nlight for which he prayed, and which was so marvellously sent", "height": "3548", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0222.jp2"}, "221": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF CORNELIUS. 211\\nThat this man born a heathen should not fail of repentance unto\\nlife, an angel is despatched to instruct him whom to send for that\\nPeter should not be disobedient to the message, a wonderful vision\\nis sent, with the interpretation by the Holy Spirit himself; thus by\\na series of miracles are gathered the first fruits of the harvest of\\nGentiles for the church of the Redeemer.\\nA heathen philosopher says No one is happy before death.\\nExperience has taught that no earthly possessions bestow happiness.\\nBut it belongs only to Christianity to point out the means both of\\nattaining the highest degree of enjoyment in this life, and of secur-\\ning that of the life hereafter.", "height": "3508", "width": "2260", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0223.jp2"}, "222": {"fulltext": "XXI.\\nTHE FAMILY OF MATTATHIAS.\\nIN THE APOCRYPHA.\\nThe history of Mattathias and his family illustrates the heroic life\\nof their ao-e the character of heroes who ventured and sacrificed\\nall, in maintenance of their fidelity to the religion of their fathers.\\nTheir patriotism, valor, self-devotion, and generous zeal in the cause\\nof their suffering country, present a lesson and example which it is\\nuseful to contemplate.\\nThe invasions of foreign kings and the unprincipled ambition of\\ntheir own rulers brought calamities upon the people of Judea,\\nscarcely less terrible than the captivity of seventy years in Babylon\\nwhich they had suffered. Their history teenxs with accounts of fac-\\ntion, persecution, plunder, and bloodshed, through the turbulent years\\nthat preceded the succession of Antiochus Epiphanes to the throne\\nof Syria. The atrocities committed by this voluptuous and cruel\\nmonarch, in pursuance of his attempt to exterminate the religion of\\nthe Jews, went beyond those of former tyranny and violence. The\\ninsurrection of Jason in Jerusalem, while Antiochus was engaged in\\nthe subjugation of Egypt, formed a sufficient pretext for his march\\nagainst the rebellious city, the slaughter of forty thousand of the\\ninhabitants, and the seizure of as many more as slaves. The\\nvictorious invader proceeded to the outrages by which he meant to\\ntrample on their faith. He entered sacrilegiously into the Temple,\\npillaged the treasury, and seized all the sacred utensils the golden\\naltar and candlesticks, the table of shew-bread and censers, the\\nprecious vessels and ornaments of the sanctuary and not content\\nwith the rich plunder thus collected, wantonly profaned the altar of\\n212", "height": "3544", "width": "2248", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0224.jp2"}, "223": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF MATTATHIAS. 213\\nburnt offerings by the sacrifice of an unclean animal, sprinkling\\nevery part of the Temple with the liquor thus desecrating, says\\nMilman, with the most odious defilement the sacred place which\\nthe Jews had considered for centuries the one holy spot in all the\\nuniverse. The sufferings of the people and the desolation of the\\nland after the spoiler had left it, are described in the simple language\\nof the chronicle Therefore there was great mourning in Israel, in\\nevery place where they were so that the princes and elders\\nmourned, the virgins and young men were made feeble, and the\\nbeauty of women was changed. When two years were expired,\\nAntiochus, being determined to destroy even the semblance of\\nnational independence within the territories under his power, and to\\ncompel the adoption of his own laws and religion, issued the bloody\\nedict which Apollonius was appointed to execute. The agent proved\\nhimself apt to do the will of a sanguinary master. Having imposed\\nby peaceable words on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, while they were\\noccupied in religious service on the Sabbath, unsuspicious of evil, he\\ncaused his soldiers to fall suddenly upon them, smote the city very\\nsore and destroyed much people, seizing the spoils, dismantling the\\nhouses and setting them on fire, and taking captive the women and\\nchildren. Having thrown down the walks, he built a fortress on\\nMount Sion, with mighty towers, a stronghold for his men, stored\\nwith armor and provisions gathered from the plunder of the city.\\nThe inhabitants of the country around, harassed by the enemy who\\nhad set up the abomination of desolation in the holy place, dared no\\nlonger assemble to worship in the sanctuary but met in secret and\\nin fear, to call upon the God of their fathers, or lingered sadly\\naround the ruins they loved so well. The voice of prayer and\\npraise was heard no more Sion was made a habitation of strangers,\\nand was forsaken of her children her excellency was converted into\\nmourning, her sanctuary laid waste like a wilderness, her feasts and\\nSabbaths turned into reproach. Still further was her dishonor\\nincreased. A decree came forth from the tyrant, commanding", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0225.jp2"}, "224": {"fulltext": "214 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIJBLE.\\nuniformity of worship throughout his dominions and messengers\\nwere despatched to enforce submission, to prohibit the sacrifices and\\nobservances of the Jews, and to compel the people to desecrate\\nthe sanctuary, profane the Sabbaths, set up altars to idols, eat\\nswine s flesh and unclean food, neglect the rites of their religion,\\nand change all its ordinances. The penalty of death was denounced\\non all who should dare to disobey the edict, and executed on women\\nwho ventured to circumcise their children. Amidst acts of barbarity\\ntoo numerous and too terrible to record, and instances of heroism on\\nwhich Jewish tradition dwells with pride, the faithful among the\\nHebrews were driven into secret places wherever they could flee for\\nsuccor. Many suffered martyrdom, for they chose rather to die,\\nthat they might not be defiled with meats, and that they might not\\nprofane the holy covenant while others yielded to the oppressor\\nand consented to the decree. Throughout the cities of Judah idol\\naltars were built and .the people forced to join in the worship the\\norgies of the Bacchanalia were substituted for the feast of Tabernacles,\\nand the Holy Temple was dedicated to Jupiter Olympus. There\\nwas very great wrath upon Israel the nation, and the religion,\\npreserved in its ordinances for so many centuries, seemed on the\\nvero*e of utter extinction. It was a crisis that called for Divine\\ninterposition to save from destruction the sacred deposit of truth,\\ncommitted to the chosen people, that it might be preserved pure\\nthrough ages of corruption, to the coming of Him of whom Moses\\nand the prophets had spoken.\\nThe appointed deliverer arose at the hour when there appeared\\nno hope of succor, except in a miracle like those which saved Israel\\nof old. The cry of a trampled nation went up to their Creator, and\\nwas answered, not by supernatural signs and wonders and the advent\\nof the destroying angel to smite the invading host, but by the\\ninstrumentality of heroic men, who stood forth ready to do and\\nsuffer all things in the righteous cause. Modin, an elevated town\\nwhich overlooked the sea, was the dwelling-place of Mattathias,", "height": "3548", "width": "2268", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0226.jp2"}, "225": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF MATTATHIAS. 215\\na descendant of the priestly line of Joarib, who, though advanced in\\nyears, had the inextinguishable spirit of a soldier, with sagacity that\\nqualified him to be a leader to his countrymen. He had five sons\\nJohanan, Simon, Judas, who was called Maccabeus, Eleazar, and\\nJonathan all of whom were in the prime of their strength, and\\nshared the adventurous daring of their father. The blasphemies\\ncommitted in Jerusalem and Judea, the profanation of the sanctuary,\\nand the wanton and cruel outrages against the religion of the Jews,\\ngrieved the heart of the old man and his sons that they desired\\ndeath rather than life they broke out into lamentations, rent their\\nclothes and put on sackcloth, and mourned very sore. Meanwhile\\nthe officers of Antiochus, arriving at the city of Modin, to enforce the\\nexecution of the royal decree, came to Mattathias as an honorable\\nand great man, strengthened with sons and brethren, and offered\\nsplendid rewards to purchase his submission and his influence with\\nothers. Numbers of the faithful had fled to Modin for security, and,\\nit might be conjectured, would be swayed by the example of such a\\nman. The answer of the old man to the magnificent offers was\\ngiven in a loud voice, that his resolution might be publicly\\nproclaimed Though all the nations that are under the king s\\ndominion obey him, and fall away every one from the religion of\\ntheir fathers, and give consent to his commandments, yet will I and\\nmy sons and my brethren walk in the covenant of our fathers.\\nThe scene may be imagined as one of the most picturesque and\\nimpressive. The aged man surrounded by his household and\\nrelatives, whose decision was his confronting the haughty Appelles,\\nclothed in the delegated authority of royalty the crowd of anxious\\nlisteners wavering perhaps themselves, but confirmed by the lofty\\nlanguage they heard the consequences depending on the issue, in\\nwhich every man, woman, and child was so fearfully interested the\\ncondescending entreaty of the king s commissioner, and the stern\\nreply of the incorruptible patriot present us with a scene the moral\\ngrandeur of which has rarely been equalled. The altar, it appears,", "height": "3520", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0227.jp2"}, "226": {"fulltext": "216 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nhad already been prepared for offering sacrifice to the heathen deity,\\naccording to the royal commandment. No sooner had the voice of\\nthe noble Mattathias ceased to be heard, than an apostate Jew came\\nforward, in the sight of all, to offer sacrifice. Inflamed with zeal,\\nand unable to forbear the exhibition of his just anger, the old man\\nrushed to the altar and slew him upon it. Then he fell upon the\\nking s commissioner, whom he killed, and pulled down the altar,\\nand lifting the voice of patriotic indignation, he cried throughout\\nthe city, calling upon all who were zealous for the law to follow\\nhim and his sons to the mountains. This heroic family fled,\\nwithout carrying with them any of their possessions in the town\\nthey w r ere willing to give up all for the privilege of living and\\ndying in the true faith. Their example was followed by others,\\nand when a thousand Jewish fugitives, surprised in a cave by\\nthe Syrian soldiers, were slain on the Sabbath-day, unresisting\\nfor they would not profane the day by fighting, even in self-\\ndefence Mattathias and his followers determined to do battle\\non that day as upon any other, if assaulted by the enemy. Their\\nranks were swelled by those who fled from persecution, and their\\nenterprise of revolt was conducted with zeal and discretion. Con-\\ncealed in the secret fastnesses of the mountains, they watched their\\nopportunities to descend upon the cities, and going round about,\\npulled down the heathen altars, enforced circumcision, punished\\napostates, and pursued the invaders, who fled before them. The\\nwork of deliverance and restoration prospered in their han^ and\\nthey recovered many copies of the law. The terror of Mattathias fell\\nupon his enemies, and brought crowds of zealots to his standard of\\nrebellion. The work was advancing, but not yet ended the struggle,\\ntoilsome and severe, was in its progress, and the faith of those who\\ntrusted in a Higher Power could discern the end, though as yet it was\\nbeyond the vision of hope, when he, whose mighty spirit had labored\\nwith the revolt and brought it to light, sank under the weight of\\nyears. The time drew near that Mattathias should die but on the", "height": "3548", "width": "2252", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0228.jp2"}, "227": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF MATTATHIAS. 21 7\\npoint of departure, he committed to his sons the mission he had so\\nfar nobly discharged, and reminding them of the worthy acts of the\\nHebrew fathers, enjoined it upon them to give their lives for the\\ncovenant. To Simon as a man of counsel, the brothers and their\\nfollowers were tc listen but Judas Maccabeus, who had been a hero\\nfrom his youth, was appointed their captain in the father s stead.\\nHaving settled the succession to his command and repeated his\\ninjunction and his blessing, this brave and pious man died, and was\\nburied at Modin in the sepulchre of his ancestors, mourned for by\\nall Israel.\\nThe dying command of the father was reverenced by his\\nsons, and the success that followed the banner of the Maccabees\\nshowed his wisdom in the choice of a leader. The signal defeat of\\nApollonius, Governor of Samaria, whose sword was carried all his\\nlife afterwards as a trophy by the victorious general the overthrow\\nof Seron and his mighty host in the pass of Bath-horon, with other\\nbattles won, brought upon the people round about an exceeding\\ngreat dread of Judas and the valiant brethren, and gave hopes to\\nthe trampled nation of success in their struggle for independence.\\nThe father s example had been nobly imitated by the sons the\\nrenown they acquired was worthy of him they fought zealously for\\nthe lives and laws of their countrymen, looking for victory, not in\\nthe multitude of an host, but in the strength that cometh from\\nHeaven.\\nThe tyrant Antiochus saw the danger, and committed to Lysias,\\na noble of the blood royal, the task of subduing the insurrection in\\nJudea Nicanor and Gorgias were chosen by him to lead the\\narmy, with the general Ptolemy and the united forces, swelled by\\na foreign horde, advanced to accomplish not only the destruction of\\nthe insurgents, but the rooting out of Israel and the utter desolation\\nof the remnant of Jerusalem. It was the crisis in which faith and\\nconstancy suffered their severest trial for the little band Judas\\nhad assembled at Mizpeh numbered only six thousand men. The\\n10", "height": "3504", "width": "2224", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0229.jp2"}, "228": {"fulltext": "218 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nsacred city, over against which stood those devoted warriors, lay\\nvoid as a wilderness there was none of her children that went in\\nor out the sanctuary was trodden down, and aliens kept the strong-\\nhold the heathen had their habitation in that place, and joy was\\ntaken from Jacob, and the pipe and the harp ceased. From\\nMizpeh arose the voice of prayer, while the people fasted and\\nexhibited the customary tokens of humiliation before God. The\\nbook of the law, profaned by the heathen, was laid open the appeal\\nmad a to Hebrew zeal for the divinely appointed ordinances; and\\nthe proclamation sounded that all who were fearful or whose\\ndomestic occupations might interfere with their devotion to the\\ncause, should return, according to the law, to their own homes.\\nThe force of Judas was thus reduced one half, and even these soldiers\\nwere unprovided with proper armor or weapons. They came in\\nsight of the camp of the heathen at Emmaus, strong and compassed\\naround with expert and valiant horsemen. But the victory wa3 not\\nto the mighty. The attack of Judas on the enemy s camp resulted\\nin the defeat and flight of the Syrians and while he restrained his\\nmen from taking the spoil, till Gorgias and his host should return\\nfrom the mountains where they had been seeking the Jewish\\ninsurgents, that army came in sight. The smoke of their burning-\\ntents first revealed the disaster that had taken place, and was\\nquickly followed by the startling discovery of the flight of their\\nfriends and the force of Judas in the plain ready for battle. It was\\ntoo late to retreat without loss the conflict was short, the enemy\\nsoon fled, and the victors took possession of the rich spoil of the\\ncamp. This decisive victory was followed by others equally\\nimportant and having discomfited at last the army of Lysias,\\nJudas and his brethren, with their assembled followers, entered\\nJerusalem. It was a day of sorrow and humiliation, mingled with\\npious joy, when the deliverers of Israel went up into Mount Sion\\nand looked once more upon the ruined sanctuary, the altar profaned,\\nthe gates burned, shrubs growing in the courts as in the forest or ir.", "height": "3548", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0230.jp2"}, "229": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF MATTATHIAS. 219\\none of the mountains, and the priests chambers pulled down. The\\nsight of desolation so fearful stirred the fountains of religious grief,\\nas well as humbled their feelings of national pride. The voice of\\nprayer and praise was mingled with loud lamentations and the\\nalarm of trumpets and the wild cry to Heaven for vengeance, with\\nthe usual oriental tokens of horror and anguish the rending of their\\ngarments, prostration, and heaping of ashes on their heads. Their\\nleader proceeded to the work of repairing and purifying, appointing\\narmed men meanwhile to fight against the garrison in the fortress\\ninstalled in their office the priests who remained worthy of it,\\ncleansed every part of the sanctuary, built a new altar, and replaced\\nthe holy vessels and the hangings of the temple. The feast of\\ndedication which followed on the completion of this sacred work,\\ncelebrated with songs, and anthems, and harps, and cymbals, and\\nthe praises of the people, was a festival indeed of joy and gh.dness\\nand kept from year to year thenceforward, in memory of the\\nnation s wonderful deliverance from the power of the heathen.\\nThe military career of Judas, as narrated in Jewish history, is\\ninteresting and instructive. He was to see the desired independence\\nof his country more severely threatened from internal contentions,\\nfomented by the new sovereign of Antioch, than it had been by the\\nsavage tyranny of his predecessor for violence and oppression had\\nroused the energy of the people, effacing petty causes of dissension,\\nand uniting them in common zeal for their common defence ai d the\\nrestoration of their national religion. When the cause of patriotism\\nand that of faith were blended, an invincible safeguard to the nation\\nwas raised up, and dangers of the most insidious kind the\\nencroachment of foreign customs and vices, avoided. The General\\nhad now to struggle with the combined evils of treachery and\\nviolence and bravely did he bear himself through all, to the final\\nstep of a treaty of alliance with Rome, securing the indeperdence\\nof Judea, under her powerful protection. The death of the great\\nMaccabee was equally glorious with his life. Beset by the host of", "height": "3512", "width": "2216", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0231.jp2"}, "230": {"fulltext": "220 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nDemetrius, under Alcimus and Bacchides, the little army gathered\\naround his standard, though equal in number to those who had\\ndescended on the enemy s camp at Emmaus, lacked their resolution\\nand strength of faith in the God of battles. They saw the great\\nmultitude of the invading army, were sore afraid, and many con-\\nveyed themselves out of the host. Abandoned of his soldiers, save\\neight hundred men, and sore distressed in mind, the hero spurned\\nthe entreaty of those who were with him to withdraw from the\\nunequal contest. He was ready to die for his brethren, but not to\\nstain his honor by flight. Once more his chivalrous spirit rejoiced\\nin the battle, which continued from the morning till night once\\nmore he saw the enemy give way before him, but he was over-\\npowered by numbers and fell upon the field. His brothers\\nJonathan and Simon bore his corpse from the ground when the\\nbattle was over it was conveyed to Modin and interred with mili-\\ntary honors amidst the lamentation of Israel, in the ancestral burial-\\nplace.\\nTwo others of the noble sons of Mattathias had perished by a\\nviolent death in the service of their country. John had been sur-\\nprised and slain by Arabs, and Eleazar, in battle with the Syrians,\\nhad sacrificed himself, hoping to strike a fatal blow at the enemy,\\nby rushing under and stabbing an elephant, which, from its height\\nand royal harness, he supposed to bear the king. Of Judas, the\\nmartyr of his country, Milman says Among those lofty spirits\\nwho have asserted the liberty of their native land against wanton\\nand cruel oppression, none have surpassed the most able of the\\nMaccabees in accomplishing a great end with inadequate means\\nnone ever united more generous valor with a better cause.\\nAmidst the oppression of the partisans of the Maccabees that\\nfollowed, Jonathan assumed the command at their request, and soon\\ngave evidence that he shared the spirit of his gallant brothers. Ho\\nbecame High Priest, and was the first of the Asmonean princes,\\nwhose reign terminated with Herod the Great, after having continued", "height": "3548", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0232.jp2"}, "231": {"fulltext": "THE FAMILY OF MATTATHIAS. 221\\none hundred and twenty-six years. After many services and vic-\\ntories, he was treacherously taken prisoner by Tryphon, who aspired\\nto the crown he had placed on the head of young Antiochus, and\\nafterwards put to death. The last of the noble race of Mattathias,\\nSimon, was invested with the command, and succeeded in establish-\\ning the independence of the Jewish kingdom. The land had rest\\nwhile he lived his reign was one of beneficence and peace, and he\\nwas universally beloved. But it was his fate to perish by violence\\nlike the rest. The country was invaded by Candebus, the general\\nof Antiochus a traitor was found among those of his own house-\\nhold, and the sovereign, with his eldest son, assassinated at a banquet\\nin Jericho. John Hyrcanus, the younger son, succeeded his father,\\nand under him Judea once more assumed the dignity of an inde-\\npendent state.\\nThe sepulchre with seven pillars, raised on an elevated site at Modin,\\nfor the father, mother, and sons of the Maccabean family, stood\\nas a sea-mark, it is said, to the vessels that passed the coast. The\\nmonument to their honor in the hearts of their countrymen was\\nmore enduring than marble. Viewing them as a family, their zeal,\\nthen* magnanimity, and their generous heroism, qualities which not\\nonly marked them as individuals, but drew closer the bonds of rela-\\ntionship between them, shine with eminent lustre. The living prin-\\nciple which animated them, which lifted them above the things of\\nearth, and gave them power to sacrifice life itself in the cause to\\nwhich they were pledged, was religious faith. Theirs was no blind\\nand fruitless belief, nor one satisfied with mere assent to doctrines or\\nperformance of ceremonies. It was the element of a life in the\\nsoul, higher and purer than that of the senses, with aims beyond\\nthis world and strength from above to work wonders. The dying\\nexhortation of Mattathias, the precepts he leaves with his sons, and\\nthe examples he holds up for their emulation, show that he had\\nbrought them up religiously. While not insensible to the considera-\\ntions which have led so many heroes to pour out their blood, the", "height": "3512", "width": "2204", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0233.jp2"}, "232": {"fulltext": "222 FAMILY PICTURES FROM THE BIBLE.\\nlove of glory and of his fatherland, he discerns the nothingness of\\nthat renown which is merely the applause of men, and the intimate\\nconnexion of true fame with the discharge of their highest duty as\\nmen, and as Hebrews. He bids his sons be valiant, and show\\nyourselves men in behalf of the law, for by it shall ye obtain glory.\\nHis words sink deep into their hearts, and well do they prove them-\\nselves worthy of him, in devotion to the religion of their fathers, as\\nin valor and renown.\\nNo account is given of the mother of this gallant race but from\\nthe character of the sons we must infer that she possessed the\\nvirtues they inherited. One mother of that period, whose sufferings\\nare recorded, is worthy of higher admiration and esteem than the\\nheathen mother who gave the shield to her son, with the injunction\\nto return with it or upon it. She was taken with her seven sons,\\nwho were commanded by the king to taste swine s flesh contrary to\\nthe law. When they refused, and declared their readiness to die\\nrather than transgress the laws of their fathers, six were put to death,\\n-one after another, with cruel torments, in the presence of their\\nmother, who exhorted every one of them in her own language,\\nfilled with courageous spirit, bidding them cleave to the Creator\\nwho gave them breath and life, and could restore them. With the\\nyoungest and last remaining son of the seven, Antiochus essayed\\nthe persuasion of splendid promises, offering him both wealth and\\npromotion and when the young man would in no case listen to\\nhim, he bade his mother give counsel that might save the life of her\\nchild. Her counsel was worthy a noble mother, and the spirit in\\nwhich his brethren had suffered martyrdom. I beseech thee, my\\nson, she says, look upon the heaven and the earth and all that is\\ntherein, and consider that God made them of things that were not\\nand so was mankind made likewise. Fear not this tormentor, but,\\nbeing worthy of thy brethren, take thy death, that I may receive\\nthee again in mercy with thy brethren. After he also had died\\nundefiled, putting his trust in the Lord, the mother died last of all.", "height": "3520", "width": "2292", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0234.jp2"}, "233": {"fulltext": "THE FAMfLY OF MATT ATIIIAS. 223\\nprobably executed by command of the tyrant. Such examples\\nillustrate the words of Him who bade his disciples fear not those\\nwho could only destroy the body and deserve to be placed by the\\nside of the martyrs of Christianity, whose sufferings for conscience\\nsake, and perseverance to the end, illustrate the power of the faith\\nwhich overcometh the world.", "height": "3516", "width": "2204", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0235.jp2"}, "234": {"fulltext": "LBS", "height": "3492", "width": "2240", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0236.jp2"}, "235": {"fulltext": "", "height": "3504", "width": "2204", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0237.jp2"}, "236": {"fulltext": "", "height": "3508", "width": "2248", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0238.jp2"}, "237": {"fulltext": "", "height": "3515", "width": "2055", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0239.jp2"}, "238": {"fulltext": "Deacidified using the Bookkeeper process.\\nNeutralizing agent: Magnesium Oxide\\nTreatment Date: May 2005\\nPreservationTechnologies\\nA WORLD LEADER IN PAPER PRESERVATION\\n1 1 1 Thomson Park Drive\\nCranberry Township. PA 16066\\n(724)779-2111", "height": "3520", "width": "2292", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0240.jp2"}, "239": {"fulltext": "", "height": "3512", "width": "2208", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0241.jp2"}, "240": {"fulltext": "LIBRARY OF CONGRESS\\n014 243 868 9\\n(Ml\\nBra\\n*v\\nw", "height": "3634", "width": "2368", "jp2-path": "familypicturesfr00elle_0242.jp2"}}